Tribulation
by 88KeysOfSadism
Summary: "What is that?" asked Kid Flash in disgust, looking at the crumpled heap that had just appeared on the screen. "Why, don't you recognize your own teammate, Flash Boy?" A stark white hand extended from the darkness and attached itself to the lump. With a strangled cry of pain, the head of a figure was forced up to face the camera. "Oh my God..."
1. Chapter 1

**Okay, so this is sorta kinda a sequel to First Time for Everything... Well, in all honesty, that's mostly a prequel for this. It's not necessary to read that before you read this, but it would help... Maybe... Not really... Actually, it'd just make me feel better, but whatevs.**

**Anywho, this story is rated T for torture in later chapters. If you don't like that, don't read it. **

**So yeah... I DON'T OWN YOUNG JUSTICE! (As much as I'd like to)**

* * *

Kid Flash wandered out towards the kitchen, yawning heavily. True, he'd gotten lots of sleep, but he was still tired. He was always tired. And it was three in the morning, but that was irrelevant. Wasn't it?

As he wandered past the living room, he couldn't help but notice that the TV was on, although his tired brain refused to register the words coming out of the mouth of the reporter. Groaning, he walked around the side of the couch to grab to remote and turn it off.

"Whoa!"

Wally jumped at the sudden noise and turned to the kitchen, remote falling to the floor. Standing there was Robin, dressed in civvies with his traditional sunglasses covering his eyes.

"KF! Dude, you look like a zombie," Robin laughed, walking over to his best friend. "What are you doing up?"

"I could ask you the same question," mumbled Wally, his exhausted mind still not putting all the pieces together.

Robin shrugged and flipped the TV remote into his hand with his foot. "I'm a bit of a night owl," he replied nonchalantly.

Kid Flash watched as his best friend flopped onto the couch, somehow managing to do it gracefully. Wally shook his head and sat down as well. "Whaddya watching?" he asked through a yawn.

The ebony-haired boy muted the TV with the flick of a button. "Some newscast thing."

"I didn't know they had news at three in the morning," muttered Wally, running a hand over his face and stretching out his features. Robin snickered at him. "Anything good?"

Had he been a little bit more awake, Wally probably would have noticed the flicker of hesitance cross the younger teen's face. "Nope! Never is."

The red head nodded and yawned. "Well, I need food," he said bluntly, getting off of the couch and shuffling towards the kitchen.

"So _that's_ why you're up." Robin got up off the couch, debating whether or not to run circles around the haggard speedster.

Wally just nodded and continued into the kitchen. Robin followed him, seating himself on the counter and watching.

"I thought Batman didn't want you to stay away from Gotham too long," Wally commented, looking through cabinets to find the bread. "He's always making up excuses for you to not be at the Cave overnight."

Robin watched his friend, carefully choosing his next words. "Batman told me to sit this one out. I'm not tired enough to sleep, so instead of wasting my Friday night with something as unimportant as sleep, I decided to come here and wait for you guys to wake up. Or, in your case," Robin started chuckling, "Scare somebody out of their wits."

Wally glared half-heartedly at his friend before taking a bite out of his speedily-constructed sandwich. "Yeah, thanks for that," he muttered, hopping up on the counter next to Robin.

They sat in silence for a while. Well, more accurately, Wally ate in silence. Finally, Wally broke the lull in speech.

"Rob?"

Robin snapped his head up in a jerky, almost surprised movement. "Yeah?"

Wally peered at him in concern. "You okay?"

"Course I'm okay." Robin grinned at his friend. "Definitely feeling the aster. Why?"

"You seem really tense, that's all."

Robin's grin almost faltered. Maybe he wasn't as great of an actor as he thought.

"Dude, you can talk to me." Wally placed a hand on Robin's shoulder, and the younger teen instantly looked at the floor. The speedster sat patiently as he waited for Robin's response, something very difficult for him to do.

Robin's brain was waging an internal war. Tell the truth and look weak, or lie and stay the strong silent one. But the last one would push Wally away. His best friend. He couldn't do that.

After several minutes of thick silence, Robin nudged Wally's hand off his shoulder and slid off the counter, walking back towards the living room. Wally looked dejectedly at the floor. He might be the kid's best friend, but there were some things the speedster would never know.

"Do you remember back about two years ago?" Robin asked in a hushed voice. Wally got off the counter as well, but stayed put.

"Yeah…"

"Remember when we had a sleepover at your place?" Wally nodded, even though the thirteen year old couldn't see him. "Remember how I woke up in the middle of the night, screaming?"

Wally flinched at the memory, but nodded nonetheless.

"I told you about the Joker. The first time I met him. How I'd been really afraid, and how I told you not to tell anybody else. Ever. And then I told you I wasn't afraid of him anymore, just the memory. Remember?"

Wally swallowed hard. "Yeah, I remember."

Robin turned around to look his best friend in the eye. "It wasn't the complete truth. I was still afraid of him. But I could fight past it. It wasn't a paralyzing fear like it had been for the first couple of months after I met him. Eventually, I worked past it. But the memory would just pop up sometimes, mostly in my sleep. I…" Robin's voice faltered; Wally took a step towards him.

"I never told Batman." The voice was now a whisper, and Wally had to strain to hear him. "I was afraid he'd be ashamed of my weakness…"

Wally didn't know how to respond. He walked up to Robin, who turned away from him a little bit.

"You wanted to know what I was watching?" the tiny whisper was so hard to hear, but Wally still managed to pick out the next words. "The Joker broke out of Arkham. Batman wouldn't let me see the report, and told me to go home. I looked anyway." The normally strong teenager swallowed hard, struggling to find the next words.

"All of the Arkham staff he killed… They were all killed the same way." Robin took a deep breath before continuing. "They were all slit across the throat, and… And before they were killed, they had an 'R' c-carved into their left shoulder. Eye witnesses said that they heard him muttering that it wasn't the same, that he wanted the 'real deal.'"

Shaded eyes matched green. "Wally, he's… He's coming for me."

* * *

**Reviews will be well-loved XD**


	2. Chapter 2

**ERMIGERD I HAVE BEEN INSPIRED!**

**I got so many favorites and reviews and stuff, and I decided, "Eh, this chapter was gonna be longer, but people wanted an update, so what the heck..." So there's another half to this chapter that'll come later.**

**Sorry, no torture yet. For those people like me who are way too eager for those types of things, I apologize. I have to set up the story first XD**

**I **_**still**_** don't own Young Justice. I'm sorta like that obnoxious kid in grade school that plays with the toys and screws them up and they never work right again… Hehe…**

* * *

_Remember the plan,_ warned Aqualad, gazing silently at Robin.

The Boy Wonder's laugh echoed through their minds as he responded. _Of course I'll remember it; I came up with it!_

_Wait, whaddya mean, you came up with it? _queried Wally, turning to look at his youngest teammate. The boy had already vanished though, swallowed up by the shadows with his signature cackle.

_Does that ever get any less creepy? _asked Zatanna, nervously twirling a lock of her hair.

She received a unanimous _No _as a response.

Wally watched his teammate disappear. Despite his denial that the Joker would not be involved, the speedster couldn't help but worry for his best friend. Just a week ago, the same kid had been confessing to him that he was scared out of his mind because the Joker was loose. The madman hadn't been spotted for the week since.

But even Kid Flash couldn't ignore the way Robin jumped at the sudden appearance of anyone. He was like a horse now; you had to touch him before you spoke so he knew you were there. If you didn't, he'd jump in surprise. Even if you did, he'd still flinch. It was so unlike him to be jumpy. The whole team had noticed, but only Wally knew why.

"Kid Flash."

The speedster spun around at the sudden voice, before realizing that it was only Aqualad.

"We have a mission to complete. Come."

Robin laughed to himself as he crept along in the shadows, still listening to their conversation. After a couple minutes though, he averted his attention to where he was going. His team was just discussing battle plans right now; he didn't need to be a part of that. Not according to the plan…

_I'm probably the only one who noticed that he's in the Batmobile, thought Robin, smirking. Batman had contacted them to give them a desperately wanted assignment. For the rest of the team, they were just bored out of their minds and wanted something to do. For him, he wanted to get his mind off… other things._

"_A hostage situation has arisen on the east side of Gotham." _

_Had anyone looked away from the screen, they would have noticed Robin's complexion paling significantly. Batman's eyes narrowed on the screen, watching his partner intently._

"_You will go negotiate the release of the hostages and the capture of those responsible. I am sending the coordinates to Robin now."_

_The rest of the team seemed rather shocked that they were being given such an important assignment. Never before had they negotiated a hostage situation without an adult. Robin pulled up his holocomputer. _

"_Coordinates received, Batman," stated the Boy Wonder finally. _

"_I realize this team was created for covert missions, and I would go myself, but a far more dangerous criminal is at Gotham National right now."_

_A barely perceivable nod told Robin all he needed to know, and the teen loosened up significantly. The Joker was behind that heist; the hostage crisis they were about to negotiate was someone else._

"_Gotham is a dangerous city. Listen to Robin; he knows the city better than any of you. Robin, you will use the tactics you normally would for a normal hostage situation. Batman, out."_

_The screen bearing the Dark Knight's face flickered off, and the rest of the team turned to the youngest member._

"_You look confused, Robin," stated Aqualad calmly._

_Robin quickly hid his disorientation with a smile. "No confusion here. Definitely fused." In reality, the Boy Wonder was very confused. The normal method used by the Dynamic Duo was simple, really: Batman would go in the front way and try to negotiate verbally while Robin would go in from the back, take out their communications and guards, and free the hostages. For a normal hostage crisis, this worked fine; generally the captors were too inexperienced to think of shooting their captives when they were being picked off one by one by shadows. But with an entire team…_

"_Well, 'Definitely fused,' why don't you explain to us what we're supposed to do?" asked Kid Flash, grinning widely. Robin knew why; first real mission for him without a mentor. Probably very whelming for him. But he still didn't know how it was supposed to work._

_Then it clicked._

"_All of you will go in the front. You'll attack like you were going to try and take them down. When they threaten to hurt a hostage, you start verbally negotiating. Aqualad, I'll leave that to you; I'm not sure if anybody else can be as graceful with words."_

_The rest of the team nodded, until Artemis noticed a very important detail. "Wait. All of us? What about you?"_

_Robin grinned. "I go in the back and take them out from behind."_

"_Alone? Dude, that's suicide!" exclaimed Wally in protest._

"_Apparently not," said Zatanna. The whole team turned to look at their normally rather quiet teammate._

"_Apparently not?" questioned Wallly, skepticism apparent on his face._

"_KF, Bats and I do this all the time, when it's not some seriously dangerous psycho." Robin rolled his eyes, though it was shielded by his mask. _

"_Then it will work," said Aqualad. "We shall do as you have instructed, Robin."_

"_What if it is some dangerous psycho though?" asked Artemis. "Gotham's practically swarming with them. What if it is a psychotic freak?"_

"_Didn't the Joker break out of Arkham?" asked Miss Martian curiously. "Somebody at school mentioned something about it…"_

_Robin refused to show fear in front of his friends and swallowed the emotion. "Guys, the Joker is on the other side of town where Batman is."_

"_How do you know?" asked Wally. _

"_Batman told me," explained Robin simply._

"_Told you how!?" exclaimed the speedster._

_Robin just grinned. "Guys, there's nothing to be worried about. The Joker isn't going to show up."_

_Aqualad nodded. "I trust you, Robin, as does the rest of the team. Now we need to get going, before the situation becomes more… dire."_

Robin was now behind the run-down building, back pressed firmly against the grime-covered bricks, waiting. A few seconds later, the sound of fighting by the front of the building reached his ears, and he quickly ran into the back stairwell.

Whatever the two-story structure had been used for in the past, it obviously wasn't needed anymore. The stairs were crumbling, too delicate-looking for the Boy Wonder to want to ascend them. Instead, he used a grapple to shoot up to the second floor landing, which thankfully, seemed stable.

He pressed an ear to the door in front of him. There was a room behind that door, not a hallway, and the room was unnaturally silent. No communication between captors. No whimpering or sound from the captives. No footsteps. Nothing. The whole room had to be empty.

Robin's eyes narrowed. That wasn't right. That definitely wasn't right…

He stepped back, and kicked the door down.

* * *

**Meh, like I said, half finished with a cliffy XD**

******THANK YOU SO MUCH TO THOSE OF YOU WHO FAVORITED/FOLLOWED: **jakefan; secret00; bloodrai; randomkitty101; lindz4567; lchigochan626; Jesters of the Moon

**And I shall reply to your gracious reviews:**

**jakefan: Thanks! Was this soon enough?**

**lindz4567: Geez, that's a lot of ooooooooo... Guess it was good!**

**Jesters of the Moon: Interested... Nice... XD**

**Reviews are caressed and cuddled in an extraordinarily creepy way... LOL JK, they just make me happy XD**


	3. Chapter 3

**This one didn't come nearly as fast as the other one… Sorry about that. Most of them won't. I HAVE A LIFE Y'KNOW!**

**Not really. Sorta. I dunno.**

**Anywho, this chapter seems kinda forced to me. There's a bit more action, but we've barely touched the plot. **

**What plot?**

**Shut up, you're not supposed to talk, oh little voice in my subconscious!**

**Sorry.**

**I don't own Young Justice, folks. Regrettable… **

* * *

"Have any more hostages been released?"

Commissioner Gordon jumped in surprise as the Dark Knight spoke from behind him. "Jesus, do you always have to do that?" he asked. Gordon knew he should be used to that type of thing happening by now, but it scared him every time.

Batman ignored the question and repeated his in a growl. "Have any more hostages been released."

The Commissioner shook his head and massaged his temples with one hand. "Only the one guy in the clown mask. Do you think-"

Batman was already gone, and Gordon sighed, shaking his head. "I'll never understand how he does that…"

Batman entered the bank through a window left foolishly open on the second floor. It was someone's office, though whose he never took the time to figure out. He crept into the hallway and towards the stairs to the main lobby containing the vault and probably all the hostages.

He walked slowly, blending into the shadows as he walked down the stairs and towards the large open room beyond. The first thing to enter his line of sight was a man. He was wearing all black, aside from a colorful clown mask on his face. He was pointing a gun at a group of hostages on the ground. None of the hostages wore masks. There were at least fifteen hostages, though Batman didn't take the time to count them all.

Batman continued down the dark hallway until he reached the end where it opened up into the spacious room. All the lights, except for maybe two or three, were out; he assumed they had been shot. He kept his eye on the hostages as he moved out into the room, keeping to the walls.

"Come on people! Time's a'wastin'!"

His head snapped to the side at the obnoxious, yet familiar, chipper voice. He didn't need to be the World's Greatest Detective to know who was speaking. Only one person in the world had a voice that could so easily grate on the nerves.

Harley Quinn.

She was wearing a clown mask, just like everyone else in the room, but she was the only female. She was directing four men in black with masks on as they carried things out of the vault she stood in front of. The Joker himself was nowhere to be seen.

Batman narrowed his eyes at that. Was the Joker even in the building? He'd seen no signs…

The only female in the room was sitting in a spinning chair, twirling around in circles as she filed her nails. Why would the Joker let her take control over his operation? He wouldn't.

Batman rushes into action. He disarms the man in front of the hostages, throwing a bat-a-rang and knocking his weapon across the room. He was knocked unconscious.

One down, five to go.

The man currently stepping out of the vault drops the duffel he'd been holding. He raises a gun, but the Dark Knight moves far faster than he expected. A single punch and a kick later, he's flying back into the vault. He hits the back hard, and doesn't rise.

That's two.

There's another one in the vault, crouched down on the floor examining some diamonds he'd found somewhere. He looks completely terrified to see the legendary Batman standing over him. He's instantly on his feet, running for his life and… That was the wrong direction. He smacks his head on a shelf in the back, doing Batman's job for him

Three are out cold.

He hears a click from behind him.

"Don't move a muscle, Batman." The voice is shaky. Perfect.

Batman ducks his head out of the way and reaches behind him for the wrist of his attacker. He twists it to the side, forcing his attacker to his knees, and slams his elbow into the ground, shattering several bones. The masked thug cries out in pain and curls up on himself, going into shock. All this happens in a matter of seconds.

Four people wouldn't be getting up for a while now.

He steps out of the vault to see another masked man staring. The gun is raised. He's a faster thinker than the rest of them. The bullets fly, but the Batman is too quick. He leaps over the bullets, sending two bat-a-rangs flying as he does so. One hits the gun, the other the man's forehead. He collapses instantly.

Five, leaving Harley for last.

He stalked over to her. She hadn't even looked up from her nails. She looked up as he approached. She opened her mouth to speak, but never got the chance.

Batman ripped the clown mask off her face. She still wore her makeup and mask. "Where is the Joker?" he demanded.

She shrugged. "I dunno, Batsy. Where d'ya think he is?"

He grabbed the front of her shirt, lifted her out of the chair, and slammed her against the wall. "Where. Is. The Joker."

"Geez Louise Bats. Looks like you've-" Her eyes flickered over his shoulder.

Batman dropped her and spun around. Another masked man was behind him. Only he wasn't wearing black. He was wearing a horribly ugly purple suit.

"Joker," hissed the Dark Knight.

The purple suited man started to back up, almost in fear. Batman ran towards him, tackled him to the floor, and ripped the mask off his face.

A horrified man with pale skin and blue eyes gaze up at him, no smile on his face.

It wasn't the Joker.

"Harley!" Batman left the thug on the ground and turned back to the woman across the room. She was laughing.

"I toldja he wasn't here!"

"Where is he?" His voice came out as a growl, and Harley laughed harder. Until Batman was right on top of her, with her throat in his hand.

She started struggling, trying to pry his fingers off her throat. "He… said he… had a me… meeting on th… the other… side… of… town…"

Batman let her fall to the floor. She gasped for air as his mind started to spin.

_The other side of town. East side._

"Robin!" he whispered.

"Hey, Batsy!" shouted Harley, knocking the Dark Knight out of his thoughts. He glared at her, but she kept smiling. "You didn't think I'd rob a bank with just six guys, didja? GET 'IM, BOYS!"

* * *

**Oooh, cliffy. **

**THANK YOU TO MY NEW FAVORITES/FOLLOWS: Elillierose; RDFitzy; Marji0922; FantasizeDayDreams; Haden841; CarlisleLover1234; Asha Carcella; iLeenOnTheWall; animegal**

**Reviews:**

**TeamLoser: I know who you are XP Thanks anyway**

**jakefan: Sorry they won't all be so quick (this chapter is evidence). And thanks :)**

**iLeenOnTheWall: Thanks! I'm totally the same way; they say they're best friends, but in all honesty, it's only shown in Performance where Wally reveals that he knows Dick's past. It seems weird though, because there's plenty of time to work on romance and stuff between M'gann and Conner, but not enough for friendship with Dick and Wally. Haha, well I hope I'm doing a good job with it!**

**I will give you all virtual cookies for reviews!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Ooooh, I got lots of complaints about leaving you with a cliffy... Sorry, it's gonna keep happening... NOT REALLY SORRY MUAHAHAHAHA**

***cough***

**Okay, sorry. Here we go.**

**And I don't own Young Justice. They probably are happy about that...**

* * *

A bird-a-rang was in his hand the instant the door gave way. The wood splintered as his foot hit it, and the room beyond was exposed.

It was, as he'd suspected, empty.

Cautiously, Robin entered, the whole situation putting him on edge. There was no light in the room except for the faintest yellow-tinted sliver creeping in a broken window from the streetlight outside. Most of the room was in shadow though.

_There could be anything in those shadows._

The paranoid thought edged into his mind, unbidden. He shook his head to clear it, but knew that his subconscious was right. And if there was someone in the darkness, he was standing in the one pool of light in the room. Right in the open.

Something moved in the shadows.

Robin saw the movement out of the corner of his eye and instantly spun around, bird-a-rang raised high, prepared to strike. All he could see was a silhouette. A familiar silhouette.

"Batman?" he asked the pointy-eared shadow. "How did you get here so fast? I thought you were on the other side of the city."

He received no response, not that he'd expected one.

"Where are all the hostages?" asked Robin, stepping closer to his mentor. The form of the Dark Knight stepped aside.

He'd been covering up the only other lit portion of the room. Robin could have kicked himself for not noticing before. And then he noticed what was being illuminated.

Eight figures were slumped together, tied with a tight cord. The collars and tops of their shirts are tainted crimson, as well as their left sides. He found the source of the blood. Their throats had been slit. The blood on the left side was from a knife wound above the heart; an 'R' carved into each of the eight victims.

"No," whispered Robin, the room starting to spin a bit. "The Joker?" It came off as a horrified, scratchy whisper. "He was here?"

Dick could feel the color beginning to drain from his cheeks. The Joker was supposed to be on the other side of town; how did he get here? Why did he come? Batman said nothing, didn't even move to comfort his son.

"The Joker was here?" asked Robin again, trying to get a grip on his emotions.

Laughter rang out through the room. Not the lighthearted cackle that he sometimes let fly when he vanished into the shadows, but a sinister, evil one. A mad one.

"Batman?"

The Dark Knight seemed to ignore his son. His shoulders were trembling in the darkness.

Then he understood.

Robin's whole world seemed to stop. He barely noticed when two firm hands gripped his arms, pinning them tightly behind his back. His eyes were transfixed on his mentor's shaking shoulders. A hand reached up in the darkness to get a firm grip on the cowl. Robin started to struggle in the strong grip, desperately trying to run for his life.

It was too late.

The cape and cowl were thrown out of the darkness, landing right over Robin's face. He managed to struggle out of the tight grasp and jettisoned the cheap black material obscuring his vision. As soon as he throwed it off, he tried to run, but the hands grabbed his arms again. Both arms were twisted at an incredibly awkward angle, and shoved inward. Robin was suddenly on his knees.

A man walked out of the shadows, stalking closer to the little bird kneeling on the floor. He crouched down and extended a hand toward the young hero, harshly forcing his face upward.

"Hello, Bird Boy," he whispered.

Robin's eyes widened at the sight of the Joker, and he started trying to struggle again.

"I wouldn't try that, Boy Blunder," warned the madman. "It might dislocate your arms… Eh, why do I care!?" He moved closer to the teen in front of him, getting close enough to whisper in his ear. "I just want to hear my little birdy sing."

Robin struggled to keep the fear off his face. The Joker's mad cachinnation rang out through the room as he stood up again.

"Oh, I missed you so much, Bird Brain!" he proclaimed, walking towards the shadows again. He vanished for a moment before a loud cracking noise rang out through the room. Robin jumped a little at the sound, and a few seconds later, the room was completely illuminated. In the shadows were at least twenty people by Robin's count, all wearing clown masks and wielding guns.

Robin groaned slightly. _Bruce is going to have my head when he finds out that I didn't notice these guys…_

"Do you like my hostages, Boy Blunder?" he asked, twirling towards his captive with a huge grin across his face. When he got no response, the Joker spun back around to walk among his clowns.

"What do you want?" Robin's voice was breathy and trembling, but still held force. The Joker stopped walking and beamed over his shoulder.

"Let me show you, Bird Boy."

The hands on his arms suddenly vanished, and Robin got to his feet. Then thick arms wrapped themselves around his thin form and hoisted him roughly into the air. A hand clasped itself around his mouth, and Robin felt himself pressed against a man's broad chest. Robin instantly began to struggled, kicking, squirming, flailing… Anything to get away. He even bit the hand over his mouth.

The man holding him just laughed and started to walk, unfazed by the reaction of the teen in his arms. Once again, Dick cursed how small he was, but he still didn't stop struggling. His hands were too far away from his utility belt to reach any kind of weapons, and he didn't want to give away the tools in his gloves yet; he might need them later.

Finally, he was set down. Robin had been too busy struggling to notice where he was going, but now he realized that he was standing in front of a computer screen. The arms stubbornly stayed around his chest, as well as the hand over his mouth.

"Look, Bird Brains. It's your little play mates!"

The screen flickered to life, and Robin stared in horror at the screen. The Young Justice team was indeed fighting, but they were heavily outnumbered. Plenty of thugs had already been taken down, but there were at least that many shown on the video screen. The team (minus Robin, of course) was backed against a wall.

Artemis was out of arrows and was using fists instead of projectiles. Her hair was threatening to fall loose of its bindings, and she had a bruise forming on her cheek.

Miss Martian looked exhausted; her powers seemed to have drained her. She was supporting a subconscious Zatanna over her shoulder, which couldn't have been helping her fatigue.

Zatanna's eyes were open, but she looked half-dead the way she hung off of Miss Martian. Her mouth was slightly open, but she wasn't saying anything. She had a gash on her forehead that was bleeding heavily.

Superboy looked undamaged, as usual, but he was the only one.

Kid Flash looked as drained as his Martian teammate, if not more. He seemed to be running on empty, and he had a slash in the arm and torso of his uniform. Blood poured out of the cuts, and the blood loss was definitely taking a toll on the speedster.

Aqualad was sweating profusely, and he stood with Superboy at the front of the team, shielding the three most damaged members from their attackers. But even Aqualad, Superboy, and Artemis wouldn't last forever.

"They look pretty bad, don't they Bird Boy?" The Joker was right next to Robin, but the teen couldn't move his head to look, not that he wanted to. "What they don't know is that there are several canisters of Joker Venom above them, set to go off as soon as I push this," the Joker held up a tiny trigger topped in red, "button. Won't it be grand?"

The Joker started to cackle again, and Robin suddenly started squirming again, surprising the man restraining him. The hand dropped and Robin started to shout.

"PLEASE, JOKER! DON'T! I'LL-"

The hand was pressed firmly against his mouth again, and the Joker spun around, furiously smiling. It was a frightening image. Robin averted his eyes to look at the screen. Superboy was looking up and across the room. It suddenly occurred to the captive teen that Superboy had super hearing. He'd heard him yelling.

The Joker was right in front of his face now, with a switchblade in his hand. Robin gulped and fought the memories of his first encounter with the Joker's blade. The insane clown thrust the knife above Robin's head.

"I-I-I won't slip up again, boss. I promise."

The knife was lowered to Robin's cheek.

"What was that, Boy Blunder?" hissed the Joker, a menacing smile stretched across his face. Using the knife, the clown pushed the hand away from Robin's mouth. The knife leapt to Robin's throat. "If you scream, Bird Boy, I'll slit your throat and push the button." He waved the trigger around in his left hand to prove his point. Robin tried his hardest not to swallow, not wanting the knife to push any farther into his skin. "Now, you'll what?"

The knife was removed and Robin let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding. He hadn't thought of what he would use as a bargaining chip to save his friends. Then another unwanted memory slipped into his mind.

"_Always wanted to carve this bird…" muttered the Joker, and then he lunged at the weaponless bird, sending swamp water everywhere._

"You can take me instead," he whispered, horrified at the words coming out of his own mouth.

The Joker froze, his smile almost faltering as he looked at the teen with confusion. "What?"

Robin swallowed and spoke a little louder. "Take me instead just don't… don't hurt them."

The Joker's grin widened. "You strike a hard deal Bird Boy. I was going to take you anyway…"

Robin's face drained of color. It hadn't worked. They were going to get hurt anyway, he'd failed them.

"But since you asked so nicely…" He started laughing again, and Robin felt a sharp pain in his arm. He twisted his head around to see the contents of a syringe being emptied into his bloodstream.

"Sweet dreams, little birdy," hissed the Joker. "Lights out."

The world started to sink away. The edges of his vision became dark.

_I'm sorry,_ he thought, knowing his team could still hear him through the link.

_What have I done?_

* * *

**HAHAHAHA WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT CLIFFY ENDINGS!? LOL**

**The next chapter will be dedicated to whoever knows what episode Robin's memory of the Joker comes from.**

**Favorites: Night Hawks; maya84; Ryir; Unknown-Sociopath; ginnylovesharry5; sherlockianlife; theoriginaljenna; BloodyBlackBlossom; .37; Potter4me**

**Reviews:**

**lindz4567: Thanks! You didn't have too long to wait… I hope…**

**FantasizeDayDreams: I think this was pretty fast; at least it wasn't a couple months LOL. Oooh, well if this chapter doesn't answer that question, then you'll find out. You shouldn't have too long to wait for your answer… *insert evil laugh here***

**Ryir: THANKS! RETURNING THE CAPS LOCK!**

**babyblue3752: What's so "well, crap."? And here's your more XD**

**Potter4me: I hope you like where it goes :) Thanks! I try very hard to make it "actiony". Joker's with Roby? Is that what you thought? Kudos for you. Thanks, I had fun writing that. Not sure how I'm gonna get there, but I'll manage XD I would be glad to make you fall of your chair *grabs frying pan* LOL**

**iLeenOnTheWall: But the virtual cookies are freshly homemade with no high fructose corn syrup! XP I like the two thumbs up though… I guess you don't have to have my cookies… LOL Haha, I bet you liked this one then. And yeah, I like the cliffy endings. Much more fun to write. There will be LOADS of DaddyBats (I hope). I'm glad that you are a happy reader! I think you might be my favorite reviewer; I get more feedback from you than from anyone else. So you've made me a very happy writer!**

**I greatly appreciate reviews!**


	5. Chapter 5

**I will now be cruel and make you all wait to see what happens to poor little Robin…**

**So, two people got the episode right: Jesters of the Moon got it first, and babyblue3752 got it next! GOOD JOB!**

**The episode was season 1 episode 14 Revelation. That's my second favorite episode from the first season.**

**So, this chapter is for Jesters of the Moon, and the next one is for babyblue3752 XD And this chapter is really rather long, so lucky you, Jester XP**

**Sorry about the longer time it took to update; I was marching in the Fourth of July parade, and I was just completely wiped out afterwards. And this chapter just seemed to take forever to write…**

**Also, as a warning, I started a musical camp. We're doing The Music Man. Auditions were today, and the cast list will be posted tomorrow. I'm super nervous… Anywho, what this mainly means is that I'm going to be really, really short on time. I'll update as often as I can, but we'll see…**

**I don't own the little people in Young Justice. If I did it would be epic, but alas, I do not. Woe is me.**

* * *

_Does everyone understand the plan?_

_Yes, Aqualad, _replied a vibrating Kid Flash. _Miss Martian is with Zatanna and they go in the broken window above cause they can fly or something. You're with Artemis and you're going in some other way to distract them so Superboy and I can go in and surprise them, yeah we get it Aqualad. Can we go now?_

_What's your issue, Wally? _demanded Artemis. _You nervous or something?_

_No, _he lied easily, looking back to where he knew his best friend was, waiting for his cue to go into the building.

A light hand touched his shoulder, causing him to spin around. _Wally, what's wrong?_ asked Zatanna, looking concernedly at him.

_Nothing, _he replied curtly, pushing the magician's hand off his shoulder.

_Liar,_ muttered Superboy.

Wally sighed. _Ask Rob when the mission's over. Can we go now? He's waiting for us…_

All other members of the team looked to Aqualad, who gave a brief nod. Almost instantly, the team took off without debate: Miss Martian pulled up her hood and became invisible; Zatanna muttered a hushed spell and a softly slowing platform appeared underneath her, carrying her towards the broken window; Artemis and Aqualad readied their weapons and hustled off to their set location; Kid Flash zipped far ahead of Superboy to the side entrance of the building.

When Superboy had joined him several seconds later, Aqualad's voice rang through their minds.

_As soon as you hear us enter the building, Kid Flash and Superboy will move in. Once the element of surprise at their arrival has worn off, Zatanna and Miss Martian will enter. We are moving in now._

The second Aqualad had finished speaking, a crash came from inside, following by yelling, gunshots, and a muffled explosion.

"That's our cue," muttered Kid Flash aloud.

Superboy nodded, and tore away the door in front of them. The speedster raced inside, grabbing weapons out of the hands of the enemy.

"I'll take that; and that; thank you, I'll have that; and-"

He obviously hadn't been watching where he was going, because he ran straight into a very tall, very angry looking guy. Guns and other miscellaneous weapons were scattered everywhere as Kid Flash fell to the ground.

"Owww," he moaned, rubbing his head and looking up. The huge hulk of a man reached out with a meaty fist to grab the speedster around the neck, but something collided with him first.

With a furious roar, Superboy had lunged at the man and knocked him away from the canary colored speedster. Superboy and his opponent were now locked in combat, leaving Kid Flash to survey the rest of the room.

Aqualad was battling a group of men with knives at a speed that could have made the speedster jealous. His waterbearers were a blur as he attacked, knocking aside knives from the untrained attackers.

Artemis was getting closed in on. She was running out of room to fire. She stuffed an arrow back in her quiver and started to attack with just her bow. She swung down, but her opponent ducked out of the way and slammed a fist into her cheek.

Kid Flash ran towards the falling archer, knocking out the guy who punched her on his way over. He knelt down next to her, helping her off her back, though she stayed crouched down.

"Are you okay?" he asked softly, reached out a hand to brush her cheek where she'd been hit. "Does it hurt?"

She nodded, but then her something caught her eye over her shoulder. Her eyes widened in fear. "WALLY! BEHIND YOU!" she shouted.

Kid turned around at lightning speed, his vision met with a machete slicing through the air towards his skull. He moved backwards as fast as he could, pushing Artemis out of the way as well. He wasn't quite fast enough.

The blade pierced him in the middle of his chest, moving swiftly to the side and slicing through his skin, clipping his arm as it moved out of his body. Wally cried out in pain, sinking against the archer he'd been trying to protect. The man behind the machete grinned maliciously and raised his weapon once more.

Suddenly, the would-be killer of Kid Flash was raised into the air. He started flailing around, his knife flying randomly and aimlessly through the air. As suddenly as he'd been raised, he flew across the room, hitting the other side with a nasty thud. He sank to the floor and didn't stir, his blade falling to the floor with a clatter.

Artemis squirmed out from beneath Kid Flash, noticing out of the corner of her eye Miss Martian and Zatanna coming through the window. More people were flying across the room, moved by unseen forces, and Zatanna was saying something backwards, doing who knew what.

"Kid Flash!" Artemis rolled her friend over, kicking herself for using his secret identity on a mission. "Are you okay? That was a stupid question; how bad does it hurt?" She was becoming almost panicky, though she tried her best to hide it. With shaking hands, she tore away the shredded costume by his wound, causing the injured boy to close his eyes and suck in his breath through his teeth.

"Sorry, sorry, sorry!" she whispered, her panic becoming less hidden by the second. "I forget what I'm supposed to do for things like this, uh, put pressure on the wound?" Artemis reached out with trembling fingers to touch the speedster's heavily bleeding side. Wally cried out in pain as she touched him, swatting her fingers away with his uninjured arm.

"Just leave it," he hissed, opening his eyes. "Go help the others; I'll get myself up."

She knew it was stupid, and that he was going to hurt himself, but she offered him a hand anyway, feeling her cheek throb as she tried to smile at him. As soon as he was on his feet, Kid Flash grit his teeth in a smile, kissed her on her uninjured cheek, and sped off to help someone else. Artemis blushed slightly, nocked an arrow, and turned to help Zatanna.

Miss Martian, though she'd noticed Wally's predicament upon entering, had flown down to help Aqualad, who was struggling against opponents armed with both knives and guns. He was expertly dodging most bullets, but some were cutting it close. Using her telekinesis, she lifted the weapons away from their owners, casting them across the room.

Without warning, Superboy came flying towards her, sending her crashing into Aqualad. All three were sent skidding across the room, coming to a halt at the opposite wall.

"Are you okay?" Superboy asked gruffly, offering his girlfriend a hand.

"I'm fine," she said softly, accepting his aid in getting back to her feet.

"Superboy! Behind you!"

At Aqualad's words, Superboy spun around. The monster of a man he'd been fighting moments ago was now standing facing them on the opposite side of the room, holding what looked like a gun attached to a backpack. Superboy realized what it was a second too late.

"GET DOWN!" he shouted to Miss Martian and Aqualad, just as the flamethrower let loose.

Superboy stood protectively in front of his two teammates, letting the flames hit him full on. Miss Martian started to feel faint and dizzy, and she nearly collapsed. Aqualad curled himself around her, shielding her from the flames leaking around the clone's body. He could feel the heat weakening him, but continued to protect the Martian with his body.

_Some assistance would be greatly appreciated,_ he sent through the mind link.

_Oh! Sorry!_

Zatanna muttered one last spell to get her current attackers off of her, then turned to the flaming weapon. After a brief thought, she shouted, "Kcab erif eht dnes!"

The flames receded from Superboy, headed back towards the source. The clone instantly turned around and crouched next to M'gann.

"She will be fine," Aqualad assured him, wiping sweat from his brow. Superboy ignored him, instead focusing on the fluttering eyes of the Martian.

"M'gann, are you okay?" he asked her, rushing to take Aqualad's place.

"Yeah, I think so," she whispered, running her fingers through her hair.

Superboy was about to say something else, but his next words were cut off by a scream.

"ZATANNA!" shouted Miss Martian. She soared towards her friend, who was falling out of the air, her platform having vanished. The flying girl caught the falling girl, moving both of them quickly away from the various battles.

Miss Martian landed lightly on the ground, and she placed Zatanna in front of her. There was a huge gash running across her forehead from who knows what, bleeding heavily. Her eyes were unfocused, and her mouth was slightly agape, like she was about to mutter a spell.

"Zatanna?"

The said magician slumped forward, revealing a massive burn running across her back. She groaned and would have fallen over had Miss Martian not caught her.

"Oh no… Oh no oh no oh no…."

She didn't know what to do. Zatanna was sagging against her, possibly dying. Miss Martian swung one of her arms over her shoulders, trying to find a way to support the limp girl without aggravating her burn.

Superboy had leapt over to them, noticing someone sneaking up to attack the girls. He landed protectively in front of them, ready to defend, not attack. The attacker raised a gun, but in an instant, it was gone.

Kid Flash joined Superboy in front of Zatanna and Miss Martian, tossing the gun aside to face the group of thugs surrounding them. Then the room tilted. Again. Why did it keep doing that? He blinked and shook his head, trying to get the room to stop moving. He backed against the wall, trying to clear his vision, to make the room stop spinning.

Across the room, Artemis noticed Wally slumping against the wall, furiously trying to clear his mind. Someone was approaching with a knife in hand. His canary yellow suit was stained, half of his suit now a vibrant crimson. He couldn't take another hit.

She reached behind to her quiver for an arrow. Her hand was met with air. She was clean out of arrows.

Scowling, she scanned the immediate area for one that wasn't completely wrecked. There was one implanted in an unconscious guy by her right foot. Shuddering with disgust, she reached down and yanked it out of his body. Trying to ignore the chunk of flesh and little bit of blood dripping off and how completely gross this was, she nocked it into her bow string and took aim, walking forward as she did so.

Artemis let the arrow fly, and it imbedded itself in the right shoulder of Kid Flash's attacker. Then she ran. Using a man's shoulder's as leverage, she leapt into the air and landed on the guy she'd just shot. He'd been trying to get back to his feet after he'd collapsed when the arrow hit him, but now he fell again. When Artemis stepped off of him, he lay still. He didn't get up again.

Wally grinned weakly in thanks and she returned it with an equally fake smile. There was a snap behind her, and Artemis turned around to see that the man standing behind her was now weaponless. A couple of seconds later, a glowing blue mace took him out from behind: somehow, Aqualad had managed to maneuver his way over to the rest of his team.

_We are outnumbered,_ he stated obviously. _This was a trap._

_No; really?_ replied Artemis sarcastically, her voice high pitched and panicky in their minds. _Thanks for that information, oh great team leader; now what are we supposed to do? _

Aqualad joined Superboy and Artemis in a protective stance in front of their wounded team mates.

_We fight._

_Maybe we should call in the League… _suggested Superboy in a dull montone.

The remaining thugs were surrounding the young heroes now, all of them looking sinister, evil, and ready to kill. The teens were outnumbered by at least five to one. Although the team generally liked to be independent and prided themselves on not relying on the Justice League to bail them out when they got in over their heads, this was one of those times where the option was looking really reasonable. Especially now that they were being closed in on. They were going down, but not without a fight.

Why hadn't they been attacked yet?

Please, Joker! Don't! I'll-

Superboy was the only one who heard the pleading voice. It was far away, or maybe the walls were just very soundproof, but it was clear as day to him. His head snapped to the upper right towards the voice.

_Superboy?_ asked Miss Martian with concern, watching as her boyfriend tried to locate the sound. _What is it? _She shifted Zatanna slightly, who didn't react at all.

_I thought I heard…_ There was another voice. It was deep, low, scared. The words were too soft to hear though. Conner closed his eyes and listened.

"You can take me instead."

That was Robin. It had to be Robin. It sounded too much like him… Instead of what? Who was he talking to? He'd mentioned Joker; was the Joker there?

"What?" That wasn't the low voice, and it wasn't Robin. It was a man's voice, not a boy's voice, and it was sort of… hard to explain. He knew he should recognize that voice, but he didn't. Where was it from?

"Take me instead just don't… don't hurt them." Robin again. Was he… negotiating? Trying to save someone… The hostages? That would make sense. Maybe the guy he was talking to was their captor. But take him where? What would this guy want with Robin?

_Superboy!_ Wally's tired but urgent voice snapped him out of his thoughts and back into the battle that had been going on around him. Just in time too; a knife was being swung out in front of him. Thoughtlessly, he raised a hand to stop the blade, which worked pretty well; the steel crumpled against his hand. But he couldn't stop another one, which slid past him towards Kid Flash. Kid moved out of the way as quickly as he could.

_One of those times you wish Rocket hadn't gone on vacation, huh?_ the injured boy muttered, a weak attempt at humor.

Superboy gave an even weaker smile, punching the thug with the knife in the face.

_I'm sorry._

The whole team felt shock at that voice.

_Robin?_ asked KF.

Silence.

_Rob? Dude? _

_He's gone._ Miss Martian's voice was one of shock and disbelief.

Kid Flash's pain was gone. He was washed over with a solid, cold fear.

_No, not like that, _muttered the Martian, obviously sensing Wally's emotions. _He's unconscious, or he's cut himself out of the link, which is practically impossible for a human and really difficult for a Martian, but I honestly wouldn't put it past him, but why would he-_

_M'gann, focus,_ said Aqualad, his amazingly calm voice drifting into their minds.

_Wait a minute, he's gone?_ clarified Superboy unnecessarily.

_I think so… I mean yes, yes, hello Megan; yes, his mind isn't in our link anymore._

Superboy was suddenly pulled back into the action by a gunshot. He furiously pounded away at the thugs, desperate to locate his missing friend.

_This is when we call in the League,_ said Aqualad.

_I'll do it, _muttered KF, sounding pained.

_We have to get out of here,_ instructed their leader. _Superboy, clear a path for us. M'gann, I will take Zatanna from you, as I am faster than you are at the moment and can get her to safety more quickly. You will make sure Wally gets out safely. Artemis, you will follow from behind. We all have to move quickly._

"Kid Flash to Watchtower; Kid Flash to Watchtower. This is the Young Justice team, requesting backup; I repeat, we are in desperate need of backup."

Aqualad took Zatanna from Miss Martian, slighting her over his shoulder as gently as he could.

_NOW!_

And they ran.

* * *

**Ooooh, evil cliffy. **

**So, babyblue: You can either deal with whatever I happen to post next, or I might be able to give you a say in it. If you want a say, then my email is (insert my username) gmail . com. If I don't hear from you in the next week, I'll assume that you don't care and just post whatever I come up with XD**

**MY AMAZING NEW FAVORITES/FOLLOWS: Beachlover470; P. Cottontail; TazzieLuv13; TheJoker'sAdmirer; RJG Lover; The Whomping Pillow; silly-melodies; Capilla007; ObsessedNerdGirl; LittleJayBird; Tokikake; biscutpoo; stardom; HonourProject; candylover665; TSRowenwood; Sambulll; Silico; RobinsReckoning; Lakeshine; MrBgRedD**

**THANK YOU SOOO MUCH! VIRTUAL ROBIN COOKIES LOL**

**Reviews:**

**jakefan: No, it's not. I really can't stand that Joker. I didn't like him very much at all. If you read First Time for Everything, it's the same Joker. I didn't really think of which one he was LOL**

**Beachlover470: Thanks**

**Jesters of the Moon: Yup! Very specific LOL Awesome. I'll try to make it as good as I can…**

**Ryir: Thanks! I'm trying to keep everyone in suspense while I figure out what I'm doing next LOL**

**Kiko'sTOY: Thanks. And I was definitely aiming for creepy Joker XD**

**babyblue3752: Awww, man; Jesters of the Moon got it first, but you can have the one after it, how about? And thanks XD**

**linz4567: Thank you! And I'm glad it wasn't; I personally felt like it took forever to write…**

**Potter4me: Yes he is! Hmmmm… I can't tell you yet, but you'll find out XD I hope not. I shall bring it on! LOL Do you end everything with "Write on dude"? I like that XD**

**iLeenOnTheWall: I'm glad I'm surpassing expectations! I feel like I'm moving so incredibly slowly… Yeah, sorry about that… I was really upset that Joker only turned up once as well, even though I wasn't fond of the way they showed him in the one episode. I felt like they could have done a better job than they did, but whatever… It is true that he's mostly Batman's enemy. So I wrote this to make up for that LOL **  
**Haha, I KNEW you'd come around with the cookies XD**  
**I'm glad you like, scratch that, LOVE this story so far. I hope you continue to LOVE where I go with it. Everyone's either gonna love the part in the summary, or they're gonna hate it. At least I think that's how it's gonna end up. I really don't know; I haven't written it yet. **  
**Thanks so much for the feedback; it really is refreshing and good for my soul to get a review that's a bit more than "I like it" ALTHOUGH ALL REVIEWS ARE APPRECIATED!**  
**LOL My email cut off your whole reply XP**  
**I personally think the Joker is the most interesting villain that Batman and Robin face. I've always thought he had a bit more color than say, Killer Croc, or Two-Face or whatever. Plenty of superheroes have a mutant villain, or a good guy gone bad, but not many people have a psycho clown. **  
**Thanks for the encouragement, and I really don't mind the longness XD**

**lunarock9: Hahaha YES I CAN! I will, I try XD**

**Sambulll: Yes, I did XP MUAHAHAHA! Of course there's more; I wouldn't just end it completely there; that would be horrible! And thanks for the compliment XP**

**Lexi123321: THAAANKSSSS LOL You sound like me; death threats as reviews. It doesn't work for me; I think it's funny XD Here ya go then XP**

**RobinsReckoning: That's right! Good job! Dude, you have no idea. Of course there's gonna be torture. I'm just trying to put in some plot first. It's a hard job, but somebody's gotta do it. I'm glad you love it! Hope your love continues XD**

**Reviews keep me writing. **

**I LOVE YOU ALL!**

**No homo.**


	6. Chapter 6

**OMIGOSH I GOT A NEW KEYBOARD AND IT'S JUST FREAKING AMAZING OIHAGSKLDJGF304289TPODV**

**Yeah. So after I played for a straight hour and a half, I wrote this. Yeah. Go figure.**

**Well, really I wrote the first part of this, and then I went to camp. And then I jacked up my knee, so now I'm bedridden for the rest of the day, which is a good time to be writing!**

**Anywho, this chapter is for babyblue3752 Hope you guys enjoy! **

**WARNING: THIS CHAPTER IS LOOOOOOONG! Not really, just longer than normal. I think...**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Young Justice, as much as I'd love to. There's a reason they call this FANfiction…**

* * *

Batman released his hold on the thug's shirt, letting him fall to the floor. He turned his attention to Harley.

"Gotta run, Bats!" she exclaimed. With that, she took off running towards the stairs. He followed her as she ran across the second floor. She hit a button for the elevator right as he got there.

"Don't you ever give up?" she muttered, and then turned and did an amazingly fast backflip, hitting him in the chin and knocking him to the ground.

"Taste 'a your own medicine, Batsy," she taunted.

_Ding!_

"Catcha later, Fatman!" With that, she cartwheeled into the elevator and the doors slammed shut.

Batman scowled at the elevator, watching as the numbers above the doors flaunted Harley's escape. This was yet another time when he regretted turning down Dick's offer for an arm computer. Robin had one, and would frequently hack into elevators to stop them, send them back, open them… He shook his head to clear it and raced back to the staircase, sprinting up the steps as quickly as he could. He knew Harley; he knew where she'd go.

He heard a door slam from somewhere above him and moved just the slightest bit faster. Finally, he reached the top and burst out on the roof.

Harley was running as quickly as she could towards a helicopter that was hovering at the edge of the building. Standing by the open doors to the copter was a man who made his blood boil: The Joker.

"Batsy!" he exclaimed, stepping off of the helicopter onto the roof. "It's been far too long, don't you think?"

Batman's scowl deepened, biting his tongue so he didn't say anything stupid. A thousand demanding questions burned at the front of his mind: _Where were you? Why did you break out? _

_Where is Robin?_

"Awww, Cat got your tongue?" taunted the Joker. His insane laugh rang out across the rooftop. "Ah well."

The Joker stepped nearer as Harley climbed into the chopper.

"Puddin'?" she called, gazing at him in concern and urgency. He didn't hear her, or if he did, he was ignoring her.

"Y'know, Batman, this is a very special rooftop. Do you know why?"

Batman glared at the clown, but said nothing. _What could possibly be so special about Gotham National Bank?_

"Hmmm, I'll take that as a no." Joker was moving towards the chopper now, and Batman mirrored his footsteps. "Well then, you'll have to ask Bird Boy. You might want to hurry to the kiddies though…"

With a cackle, the Joker sprinted to the helicopter. It had already been moving off. Batman aimed a tracer at it, but he never fired; the aircraft was too high and moving too fast for him to hit it. It would have been a waste.

_You might want to hurry to the kiddies though._

_Robin._

He put a finger to his ear to activate his earpiece communication, another brilliant idea of Robin's.

"Robin."

Nothing.

"Robin, do you copy."

Nothing.

"Come in, Robin!"

Static.

His scowl of anger quickly turned to one of worry, although it wasn't visible to anyone who didn't know him well. The Dark Knight turned concerned father leapt to another rooftop where the Batplane sat in wait. He climbed into it and set the coordinates for East Gotham.

A few minutes later, Batman was next to the facility the team had been sent to. He was watching from the shadows. The team wasn't alone. The team was there, of course, but so was half the League.

Red Tornado was standing on the sidelines, watching the team. Captain Marvel was next to him, nervously fidgeting like a small child. Aquaman was checking over Aqualad, who seemed more confused and shocked than anything. Superman was awkwardly standing next to Wonder Woman, occasionally throwing a furtive glance at Superboy. Superboy was holding a sobbing Miss Martian, looking ready to kill. Martian Manhunter, instead of consoling his niece, was looking over Zatanna; the young girl had been laid out on a stretcher, eyes and mouth still open, but unmoving. Green Arrow stood with Artemis, examining a bruise covering her face. Kid Flash was also laying on a stretcher, an oxygen mask clamped over his face. Flash was nervously vibrating next to his nephew as Black Canary looked over a bleeding gash in his side.

Only one person was missing.

"Aqualad, report." Batman stepped out of the shadows with those words, surprising even the one with super hearing. Aqualad turned to face him, as did Artemis and Superboy.

"Batman, they've just been through a traumatic experience. They are injured. Surely you can-" Aquaman's protests were silenced by a Batglare. Superman saw the distress behind the look and started to walk towards him, but Wonder Woman placed a hand on his arm, the touch telling him to wait.

Batman's glare focused to Aqualad instead, though it had slightly lessened. The Atlantean took a deep breath and began his tale.

"We did as Robin told us to; he instructed us to go in the front of the building and to provide a distraction while he would go in the back and free the hostages should our negotiations fail or should he see fit."

"And you listened?" protested Black Canary, leaving her crouching position at Wally's side.

Aqualad turned to her. "Yes. He said that was part of the plan."

"What plan?"

"The one I told him to use," said Batman, taking the brunt of Black Canary's now rage.

"This was your idea?" she exclaimed.

"Yes. When we have a hostage crisis not initiated by someone notably dangerous, that's the plan we use: Robin goes in a window or another subtle way and frees the hostages, and I go in the most obvious way and attack them until a hostage is threatened. At that point, I back down and verbally negotiate until Robin informs me that all the hostages have escaped."

"It would have worked for us had they not been ready for us," said Aqualad, cutting off Black Canary's next fit of rage. Batman raised an eyebrow.

"They expected us to show," Artemis said, finally piping up. "It's as if they knew exactly what we were going to do, and they knew how to take us down and out."

"But they didn't?" asked Green Arrow, coming to stand by his protégé.

Artemis shook her head. "They had us cornered, but they hesitated. It was like they were waiting for a signal to attack."

Batman's eyes narrowed. This wasn't right. In Gotham, if a group of thugs knew how to take out a group of heroes, and then had them cornered, the heroes would be dead. There was no compassion on the streets of Gotham, especially not towards vigilantes.

"Is that all?" questioned the Dark Knight, his harsh gaze meeting the team leader.

The Atlantean nodded confidently.

"Then where is Robin?"

Aqualad nervously looked over at Superboy, who cleared his throat awkwardly. Superman turned around to watch him explain.

"When they had us cornered, I heard Robin saying stuff," began the clone lamely. "He was negotiating with somebody. He wanted to make sure somebody didn't get hurt. I think he was negotiating so the hostages would be okay…"

"We have only been out of the building for a few minutes. We contacted the Justice League as soon as we left the building so our injured teammates could receive medical treatment. There has not been time to go back in to search for Robin."

His immediate emotion was anger. Not all of them were injured; somebody could have gone back in to look for Robin! But then the more rational side of his mind took over. As far as he knew, Robin was the only member of the team to ever negotiate a hostage situation. The team had been overwhelmed, and it probably hadn't occurred to them that their most experienced teammate could be in a situation he couldn't get out of.

Batman sighed softly. "Go back to the cave. Get cleaned up. I will report to you tomorrow. You are dismissed."

Miss Martian was the first to move. She untangled herself from Superboy and contacted the bioship. Wonder Woman and Superman took off, Superboy watched after his idol in slight disappointment; the American icon still had no idea what to do with him.

When the bioship landed several minutes later, Zatanna and Wally were rushed on first by Miss Martain, Martian Manhunter, Black Canary, Flash and Captain Marvel. Red Tornado, Green Arrow, Aquaman, and Aqualad followed, but Superboy and Artemis stayed. Green Arrow stopped when he realized that his protégé wasn't coming, but she waved him onto the ship.

Batman eyed both of them.

"You're going in after Robin," said Superboy plainly.

"We're coming," finished Artemis.

"No, you're not." With that, Batman turned around and walked towards the abandoned building, ready to begin the search for his apprentice.

"He's our friend, Batman. And we just… We just left him." Artemis finished in a whisper. "It's the least we can do for him."

"And…" Superboy looked right at the back of the retreating hero, who turned around. Superboy sighed. "When he was talking, the first name he mentioned was Joker."

Batman froze inside, but his legs were moving him towards Superboy. If Joker had been here…

"Did you hear a helicopter when you got back outside?"

Artemis shook her head, but Superboy nodded. "Saw it too. It was too far away to see who was inside though."

Batman kept his face neutral, despite his worst fear having been confirmed. He walked briskly towards the back of the building; he was right, of course, but he wouldn't believe it until he was absolutely sure…

Seeing as the Dark Knight hadn't completely forbidden them from following, the two younger heroes followed quietly behind him. The bioship took off several moments later.

Batman reached the backside of the empty establishment, finding the door to the back staircase open. Movement in the shadows caught his eye, a familiar silhouette, though not the one he'd hoped to see. He shook his head slightly, hoping the unspoken message would be received. The figure didn't move; didn't come, but didn't leave.

He took this as an affirmation of the message to stay behind, and cautiously entered the building, noting the fresh footprints in the dust; Robin's boots. The Dark Knight frowned at the footprints, following their pattern. They stopped halfway into the room. He'd shot a grapple up to the ceiling to get to the second floor, instead of using the rotting staircase. Batman followed suit.

Artemis and Superboy walked into the building just in time to see a dark cape slither onto the second floor landing. Superboy prepared to jump up, but Artemis stopped him.

"You'll bring the whole thing down," she muttered, firing a grappling arrow. They both climbed the line to the top, landing on the platform. The door was broken, not from Batman but from another figure.

Batman had already entered the dimly illuminated room. He was walking into the middle of the room when all the lights turned on with a crack.

Instantly, the Dark Knight whipped around, batarang in hand to see Superboy, with his hand on a lever.

"I figured this was the light switch," he said with a shrug.

Artemis was staring over Batman's shoulder. "Oh my God…"

Batman turned around to look.

Eight bodies were tightly bound, slouched over each other. Some of their eyes were still open, but none moving. Blood was pooled around them from wounds; each body had a slit throat and an R carved above their hearts.

_Like Arkham._

The Joker had been here.

Batman walked swiftly over to the bodies, examining them.

"They've been dead for only an hour or two," he announced softly. "Cause of death was the slit neck. The chest wounds were administered after the neck wounds, but before the victims had died."

Both younger heroes looked sick, although Superboy hid it a bit better.

Batman stood and continued to examine the room. There was a body lying on the floor, chest unmoving. Too big to be Robin. He wasn't sure whether that should relieve him or worry him.

The deceased man was muscularly built and very tall; had he been standing, he would have been taller than the Batman by at least a foot. An empty syringe was in his hand, and a pole stuck out of his chest with a slip of paper sticking off the end.

Batman ignored the slip of paper at first, expecting the typical "BANG!" to be scrawled across it. But then he noticed that wasn't what was written.

_What would you do if I broke my toy?_

Growling slightly, he crumpled the piece of paper into his fist, but then placed it in his utility belt. It was evidence, and the only hint he had. The syringe was placed in an evidence bag, its contents to be looked over at the Batcave. Upon closer examination, Batman discovered a bite mark on the dead man's left hand. The wound had been inflicted by another person; the bite was too small to be made by such a large man.

_Robin._

Looking over the body of the dead man, Batman noticed a computer screen. It was showing a now deserted room, although he suspected that at one point, it had contained the members of the Young Justice team, minus of course, his son. The room was empty now.

Sitting on the table next the computer was a little gray cylinder topped in red. A trigger for something, though he knew not what at the moment.

"Batman?"

The said hero turned around to face the archer who'd just spoken.

"We didn't find him," she said sadly.

"But I found this." Superboy entered with those words carrying what appeared at first glance to be a giant missile on his shoulders. After a second though, Batman realized that it wasn't a massive explosive, but a massive container.

He raised an eyebrow and walked over to the two younger heroes, examining the tank as he walked. It was painted a dark green, with an obnoxious, childish grin decorating the side. It was definitely the Joker's, and he had a strong feeling he knew what was contained. Then everything clicked. Then he understood.

Without a word, he left the building. Everything made sense now. He hated it.

As soon as he'd set foot outside, he looked to where he'd seen the silhouette before. The figure was gone, leaving no trace. His eyes narrowed. They were going to have a long chat later.

"Batman? Why are we leaving?"

Artemis and Superboy had followed him out, and now their footsteps stopped.

"We haven't found Robin yet," protested Superboy.

"We won't," growled the Dark Knight, stalking away towards the zeta-beam down the street. They followed him, though not silently as he would have preferred.

"How do you know?" challenged the Kryptonian. "How do you know he's not still in there, and we just LEFT him!? I thought you cared!"

Batman spun around as they reached the old shed containing the zeta-beam. He locked his furious gaze onto Conner's, whose eyes betrayed fear even though he firmly stood his ground.

"I know because I know the Joker," hissed Batman. "The Joker has Robin. And we're not getting him back unless the Joker makes a mistake, or until the Joker gets bored of him. And you'd better pray the Joker doesn't get bored to quickly, or we won't get him back in one piece."

_Recognized: Batman: 02_

"What is he going to do to him?" asked Superboy, genuinely confused.

Artemis gulped. "I don't know. And I don't think I want to."

* * *

**Ooooh, I'm just eeeevvvviiillll... Who is this random silhouette? Any guesses? **

**Next chapter is going to be Robin; I promise. **

**NEW AMAZING ****FAVORITES/FOLLOWERS: Fantastic Nonsense; lilywhitlockhaletheblackrose; janzen222; MishaColl1ns; Cirruz The Night Elf; .wolves; Electra StCloud; AmaraRae; TwistedxWhispers; .Queen; sidbit; FireofDestiny; KayNightshade; Sarah2236; The Bibliomaniac; cosmic-emotion; Castaway43; 3DPhantom; read a good book; junebugbug96; katieannapple; 0Tenshi-noTsubasa0; moviesgalore1; ; werekit; christinetjorel;**

**MY LOVERLY REVIEWS:**

**lindz4567: Yay! LOL, I think that might be a bit too much to hope so; Robin probably won't be feeling the aster in a couple of chapters… I'll leave you to your own interpretation MWUAHAHAHAHA!**

**KitKatsayzgirlzruleYJ: Love the username! And I will!**

**RobinsReckoning: YES! I SERIOUSLY TICKED SOMEONE OFF! I WIN I WIN! And you get a crowbar cookie for making my day XD (hint hint) YES! BRING ON THE TORTURE! Naw dude, I think I win the evil contest… :D**

**iLeenOnTheWall: Literally, I saw that you reviewed and I was like YAY I LOVE HER!**  
**Okay here we go:**  
**Dude, you have no idea how excited I was to see you reviewed XD Thanks for the good luck; I think I need it. Competition is fierce o.O**  
**I think it was the first one. I watched Independence Day part 1 when it originally aired. I've been watching ever since XD What was yours? **  
**Dude, my favorite episodes (Season 1; haven't watched through Season 2 with the intention of finding my favs yet…) in order are: Performance, Revelations, Home Front, the season finale cuz we must have both, aaaand… Yeah, haven't gotten there yet. I just love performance though XD I think my favorite from the season finale was when Robin was fighting Batman. OMG I totally fangirled when I saw that. It was awesome. Yeah.**  
**LOL, I try. It's just this is so much fun, and it'll get so much better, so I wanted to get five and six out of the way. Haha, that's the other reason; I've actually received a threat that if I leave it too long, one of my reviewers is going to go out and kill someone and blame me o.O So yeah. Haha, you must have patience, my young padawan.**  
**Totally wasn't feeling the aster with that Joker. This Joker is probably a mix between Heath Ledger's (OMG I LOVE HIM) and the one they used in TAS. Didn't like the one in The Batman either. He was just…. Yeah. I'm glad you like him; I hope I'm doing him justice. Dude, that is like the most epicest thing anyone has ever said. "That's how I feel the show should've approached the Joker as a character in the series." Made. Me. So. Freaking. Happy. Anywho, am I the only one mad that he only showed up ONCE in the whole series!? He wasn't even IN season two!**  
**LOL, I'm glad you like my cookies. I actually suck at making cookies, but I guess the virtual ones taste better XD**  
**LOL, nope. I was trying to come up with a better summary than "Typical Robin gets kidnapped by Joker story." So I came up with that on a whim. Hopefully, everyone will still like it when we get there… still trying to figure out how I'm gonna use it though… Hmmm… Lemme know if you wanna give me your two cents on that… I have specifics, so PM me. Glad the summary was good then! YES! IT WORKED! Like moths drawn to the light… Hopefully not Killer Moths, just normal moths…**  
**LOL Yup! Didn't fit in the email. Love that. Dude, I'm more than okay with that; I love that. **  
**Totally. Although Catwoman in Batman Returns was a bit much… I think it was Batman Returns… But dude, even a cat would die if it fell off of a building… Just sayin'. Yeesh.**  
**HAHAHAHAHA OMGI BARELY NOTICED! I like having conversations with my readers. Let's me know there's more to them than "Great chapter. Update soon."**  
**Thanks! I know, I had to put in some Wally worrying to death about Dick. It's just perfect. Also, kinda confused: He knows Robin is Dick, right? Cuz that episode… Image? Agendas? Don't remember, but the one where Robin, KF, Superboy, and Miss M are trying to foil Queen Bee… Wally keeps making side comments to Dick. "Wow, _Bruce Wayne_ sure got here fast.. *nudge nudge*" I kept waiting for Dick to smack him upside the head. GIBBS SLAP!**  
**I knooow, I figured Superboy would show the most protectiveness. I mean, it was Robin who found him so… Yeah, it does. I was debating on that, but… Yeah, I just decided to. I was thinking about a sequel (yeah, I know, too far ahead, but it was a very nearly 100% original idea so… I had to, y'know?) and Rocket would have to know this happened to Dick. Plus with my plotline… She'd have to know. Yeah. **  
**LOL, You'll be waiting for just a bit longer. It takes a while for you to figure out what happens to him. His teammates don't know yet either, so LOTS OF SUSPENSE!**  
**Thanks! Hear from ya soon I hope! XD**  
**710+ word response… BAM! And you thought YOUR reviews were long…**

**Lexi123321: No prob! LOL, of course you do. And I'm glad you understand. Dead? O.O Is that a… *gulp* death threat? LOL YAY! Of course I will XD**

** .Queen: Why thank you XD I didn't think this one was as bad as some of the other ones… I will!**

**Capilla007: YAY! RETURN OF AFFECTION! Haha, yes I am. And I know. They had to; they didn't know what was going on and they were scared, and they were outnumbered, and some of them were badly wounded, and they knew Robin could take care of himself and this is a run-on sentence… yeah. And you're right; he wouldn't willingly, but he's hurt pretty badly and isn't thinking straight. LOL, they are, but don't worry… I have evil plans, my friend…**

**3DPhantom: Thanks! I try. And I hope this was a good 'happens next'.**

**jakefan: Why thank you!**

**Anywho, I recently discovered Words With Friends... I suck, but I'd be glad to play with any of you, and chat and what not. My username is my username on here: 88KeysOfSadism**

**Reviewers get candy!**

**I wish. I'm too poor for candy. They just get their names put in my awesomeness book XD**


	7. Chapter 7

**OMIGOSH, TWO IN A DAY!?**

**I really wanted to write this one.**

**Here is the much anticipated chapter with your update on Robin. I've seriously debated making this really short just to be cruel. And because I could. But we'll see…**

**This chapter is extraordinarily mild for what I write. Not as much torture as there could be… But we'll get there… *insert evil laugh***

**Disclaimer: Young Justice isn't mine. If it were, there'd be more blood.**

* * *

Robin slowly came to, fighting a groan as he did so. He kept his eyes shut as he awoke, testing out his surroundings with his other senses. Although he couldn't remember exactly when he'd started to wake up with his eyes shut, he knew it served its purpose at times: Good for creeping his friends out, good for scaring them when they thought he was still asleep, and good for kidnapping situations.

_Okay, where am I and how did I get here?_

The last thing he remembered was a needle in his arm. Okay, so that was obviously a sedative. That would explain the fuzzy feeling, lack of remembrance, pain in his arm.

_Focus Dick._

_Right, okay .Wait, why am I talking to myself? _

If he weren't playing dead (or unconscious in this case) he would have smacked himself. Focusing. Right.

He remembered a voice in his head. Male, slightly annoying, concerned, fearful… Familiar… Wally? Probably. He'd been out with the team, right?

Right. Yeah, that seemed right.

And there had been another voice. Not in his head; in real life. He could only remember one word: Sweet. Sweet candy, sweet sugar, sweet… sweet dreams?

_Sweet dreams, little birdy. Lights out._

Joker.

Robin's eyes snapped open. It didn't matter anymore. He needed all the information he could get on where he was, any clues on his surroundings.

Nothing. There was nothing.

The room was completely pitch black. He couldn't see anything.

He knew the Joker well enough, but it was worth a shot; he pulled a hand up to switch on his night vision. He wasn't surprised when he found that his arms could only move about three centimeters before hitting something solid.

_Cuffs? Not handcuffs… Some sort of metal cuff thing…s._

There were cuffs on both hands. His ankles were chained too. And there was the same metal binding around his thighs. And his upper arms, chest, waist, and neck, although the last one was fairly loose.

He couldn't move.

_I hate knock out drugs…_

And now he discovered that he was laying, on the floor, not sitting as he usually was. At least, he assumed he was on the floor. If he were on the ceiling, he'd be leaning against the bonds. If he were on a wall, his arms would have to be above his head and really tight so he didn't fall through. So he was on the floor.

Which he should have noticed before, but didn't. Batman would not have approved…

_I'm not sure whether to be glad or worried that Bruce isn't here…_

If Bruce were here, he'd be mad that he hadn't already woken up and broken out. Furious that he let himself get captured in the first place. Angry that he had fallen for the Joker's trap, hadn't done something more to get away, hadn't called for backup, hadn't noticed the things he should have…

But if Bruce were here, it would mean he was safe. It would mean that he would be leaving, it would mean the Joker couldn't hurt him.

But Bruce wasn't there. Which means he was looking and hadn't found him.

_Or he hasn't even noticed I'm gone._

Shaking off the negative voice, he tried to figure out more about his surroundings. It was dark. And there was no light. No sound. No smell. Not hot; not cold. His mask was on (a huge relief), his gloves were on, his shoes were on. In fact, all of his clothing was on, except for his belt. Of course his belt was gone. That was rule one of kidnapping a superhero, a rule the Joker knew well.

And amazingly, he wasn't gagged.

So that brought him down to two options: Use the lock pick in his glove to break his way out, or make noise to try and alert someone to his consciousness.

Robin opted for the former; as soon as the Joker knew he was awake… Well, he didn't want to think about that.

He felt around the metal link for a lock.

_No lock._

A weakness?

_No weakness._

From what he could feel, the metal had been welded to the floor after he'd been put there. He was stuck. There was no way he could lock pick his way out of this.

Which left one option: Noise.

He waited for several minutes, mostly just trying to suck up the courage to speak. To yell. To whisper. To make any kind of noise.

He satisfied his need to make noise by rearranging himself (to the best of his ability). He made a slight scuffling noise, which sounded a thousand times amplified by the silence of the room.

_It wasn't loud enough._

"Hello?" he called out, cringing at the loudness of his own voice.

Then it happened.

The metal bars all slammed down at once, crushing his body and miraculously not breaking anything as far as he could tell. Electricity swarmed through the floor, swarming towards the trapped teenager.

He couldn't move at all, couldn't get any part of his body off of the floor; the bonds were too tight to give . He bit his lip, stubbornly refusing to scream, refusing to give the Joker that satisfaction. The electricity coursed through him, the pain caused by its traverse excruciating.

Robin started to black out (not that it was noticeable in the dark room), his mind starting to slip away from the conscious world.

Finally, the current was cut off, leaving the boy panting for breath after the sudden onslaught. The sound of the crackling flow of the electricity was still ringing in the boy's ear, his body giving an occasional jerk as the torturous current continued to spread through his body. Eventually, the side effects of the torture faded away.

_I'm so not doing that again._

Dick laid his head back on the floor and waited, not sure what was going to come next. All he knew was that he wasn't going to like it.

* * *

**Okay, so as evil as it would have been, I seriously considered stopping right at "Then it happened" just to see how mad you guys would get. I'm just that evil. Be glad I didn't. XD**

**I'll include reviews, responses, etc. next time; this was too fast for it to be worth it…**

**CONSIDER YOURSELVES LUCKY!**

**If you review, I will update sooner!**

**Oh, and has anyone figured out who the mysterious shadow might be? Send me your guesses; I wanna know what you guys are thinking XD**

**Until next time…**


	8. Chapter 8

**Here we go! Sorry it took so long; camp. **

**This is not a Robin chapter! I'm making you guys wait. Actually, I'm waiting, because otherwise I'll go crazy with torture and scare you all half to death with my evilness… Some of my ideas are just plain evil…**

**Anywho, to all you people at Comic Con: I AM SO INSANELY FREAKING JEALOUS DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW AWESOME IT IS THAT YOU GUYS ARE THERE AND YOU'D BETTER BRING ME A SOUVENIR! **

**Okay, I'm better now. HAVE FUN GUYS! I know of at least two of you that are going. WISH I WAS THERE!**

**Disclaimer: What starts with 'n' and ends with 'e'? NOT MINE!**

* * *

_Recognized: Batman: 02_

The Dark Knight strode into the Cave, noticing immediately the feeling of guilt and despair hanging in the air. Superman and Wonder Woman were the only ones in the cavernous room, talking to each other in hushed tones. They turned at the notification from the Zeta-tube.

"How are they?" demanded Batman, his voice laced with anger, though not directed at any hero.

"Zatanna and Kid Flash are in the medical bay being treated to the best of our ability," began Superman. "The rest of the team…"

"Batman." Wonder Woman placed a hand on his shoulder. "It's worse than the mental exercise."

His eyes narrowed. Of course the team would be upset with two of their members incapacitated, but he could sense that it was more than that. The majority of the guilt and sadness was because of one person, or the lack thereof: Robin.

_Recognized: Superboy: B04_

_ Artemis: B07_

The light from the tube faded, and Artemis and Superboy stepped out together. Artemis rubbed a hand over her eyes, and to the unknowing eye, she simply appeared tired. Superboy placed a hand on her shoulder and together, they walked into the living room. Superman was passed by without a second glance.

The duo entered the lounge silently. Aqualad was leaning against a wall, looking grave. Miss Martian sat on the couch, sobbing. Without a sound, Superboy walked over to her and embraced her, letting her cry against his chest. Artemis moved toward Aqualad, resting a hand on his arm as a form of comfort.

After several minutes of staying in the same positions, Green Arrow and Aquaman entered.

"Come on Artemis," said Green Arrow, attempting to lead her out of the room. "Let's go home." He put both hands on her shoulders, and she instinctively shrugged them off.

"Come, Kaldur'ahm," muttered Aquaman soothingly. "Let us return to Atlantis."

Kaldur's eyes widened. "For how long?"

"Not for long; only for a few nights."

He stepped towards M'gann and Conner. "Apologies, my King, but my place is with my team."

"Kaldur. You can't help them right now. You need rest."

"I'm staying too," said Artemis suddenly, moving to stand with her teammates.

Green Arrow sighed in exasperation. "Look, two of your teammates are resting in the medical bay, Superboy and Miss Martian are going to rest later. You guys need some time to rest."

"And while we're resting, what is Robin doing?" asked Superboy coldly. Green Arrow looked at Aquaman, not really sure how to respond.

"Though it is true that several of our members need to recuperate, one of our members is missing," said Aqualad calmly. "It is our responsibility to find him."

"Negative." All heads turned as Batman entered. "You will not be going after Robin."

"Why." Superboy's question hardly seemed like one as he stood to meet the Dark Knight's gaze.

"This is not up for debate," growled Batman. "You will all rest for tonight and report back to the mission room tomorrow night. Justice League members will head to the Watchtower immediately for a debriefing."

Green Arrow and Aquaman exchanged a look before the assembled Young Justice members started to shout.

"So they get a debriefing before we do?"

"What gives them a right to know?"

"We're his teammates! His friends! You can't keep us in the dark."

"This. Is. Not. A. Debate." Batman's glare silenced even Superboy, causing a chill to run up their spines. He was mad. Aqualad, unlike his teammates, saw something more: He was concerned; perhaps even afraid. That was not a look he was accustomed to seeing in Batman's gaze.

"Very well." The occupants of the room all looked at the younger Atlanean in shock. "We will comply, Batman. I have trust in you."

Batman nodded and left the room.

_Recognized: Batman: 02_

_ Superman: 01_

_ Wonder Woman: 03_

Though slightly unwillingly, Artemis and Green Arrow followed, headed for the Zeta-tubes, and Aquaman and Aqualad followed.

_You're not serious about staying here, are you Kaldur? _ asked Conner through the mind link.

_I am,_ he said after a while.

_What changed your mind?_

_M'gann, Robin means a lot to Batman,_ he began. _Batman is very concerned. He is also known as the World's Greatest Detective. If anyone will find our friend, it will be Batman._

_Fair enough, _muttered Artemis.

_Recognized: Artemis: B07_

_ Green Arrow: 08_

_Get some rest my friends; we have much to do tomorrow._

_Recognized: Aqualad: B02_

_ Aquaman: 06_

* * *

**That was incredibly short. Like, I'm not even kidding. The next one's gonna be kinda short too; I figured you guys would be happier with an immediate short chapter than a longer chapter a while later… Anywho…**

**Anymore guesses on the shadow? I got a couple people that said Jason Todd, and I think a Harley... Love to hear what you guys think! AND I REPLY!**

**MY FANTASTIC FOLLOWERS/FAVORITERS (is favoriters a word?): David Tennant 10th doctor; rlb190; AmandaSpardaBVB; Kitte-Wolf; ForeverFallingx; Emiko Sora; narutoXhinata321; YourFavoriteCONTRACTOR; idpitsme; Pleine Lune; Leradomi; SandmanSlim; Fanficer21; DrusillaSang; bookchomper101; ScazzaGrace; **

**THE INCREDIBLE REVIEW REPLIES:**

**krikanalo: Thank you! That I will!**

** Coolio. I feeling like I'm teasing you guys, LOL. I'll PM you about your guess; no sharing here…**

** .Queen: Haha, yes I am. Thank you.**

** I'll PM you about your guess; no sharing here. Thanks for the praise. I know! TWO IN A DAY WHAT WHAT! I feel so accomplished LOL**

**FantasizeDayDreams: YAY! Glad you are! **

** Dude! Wasn't this soon enough!? Yeesh, what do I have to do to satisfy you people!? But I cannot resist the chocolate chip cookies…**

**randomkitty101: As it should be…. LOL**

**Guest: LOL, Dude, you need a name… HAHA, I try, but you won't like it because it'll just be another cliffy MWUAHAHAHAHA *cough cough* Anywho, you should be concerned; it only goes downhill from here… *evil grin***

**Lexi123321: Aaaah, YAY! Awwww, okay…**

** YES! I figured that would have happened. I should have… that would have been so evil and amazing… Anywho, I KNOW! ROBIN TORTURE! I know right! I laughed too hard reading this OMG…**

**RobinsReckoning: Full on torture? You'll have to wait a while. But trust me, we'll get there. I wouldn't write a story without it…**

**iLeenOntheWall: YAY! Nooooo! I was thinking that this was amazingly short for you… OMG COMIC CON I AM SO JEALOUS! YAY! Oh, okay. That makes me feel better; I thought you just ran out of time LOL It means a lot to me though XD  
Thank you! I know; I felt so accomplished. If only I hadn't been injured… I'm gonna have to do Music Man on crutches LOL I get to be that awkward kid on crutches XD Ah, okay. I thought surely you of all people would be able to guess! Thanks! **

**soccernin19: I'm getting mixed messages LOL Thanks!**

**YourFavoriteCONTRACTOR: Thanks. Short but sweet LOL What do you contract?**

**Leradomi: Thank you. I hope you enjoy your stay with my random sadistic output. **

**Guest: Are you the same guest as before? Gosh people, give me a name… Yeesh. Anywho, I love that too. I'm trying to stay as close to cannon as I can. That's your answer LOL I suck. Anyways, thanks, and I can't either!**

**lindz4567: Awesome! Thanks!**

**Potter4me: Yay! Yes I did! I was like "Well, I guess that person's not reading this anymore *tear*" BUT YOU ARE SO YAY! Thank you! I KNOW I WAS SO EXCITED TO WRITE THAT IT JUST FLOWED RIGHT OUT. Hey, we're all normal here *insert demented grin* LOL, me too. I'm totally making this up as I go, so we'll see… Oh, thanks. YAY! Glad I'm doing that part right. I just figure it's good to let people know how much I appreciate their reviews and feedback XD OH. MY. GOSH. JEALOUSSSSS. LOL That's great. I saw some girl in the mall the other day with a Doctor Who shirt on, so I went up, said "Bowties are cool," hugged her, and walked away. FANDOMS UNITE!  
LOL Yay!**

**I think my replies were longer than the chapter... o.O**

**REVIEW! IT MAKES MY DAY AND MAKES ME WRITE FASTER!**


	9. Chapter 9

**OMG DID ANYBODY ELSE HEAR THE NEWS FROM COMIC CON!? THEY'RE GONNA DO A SUPERMAN BATMAN FILM IN 2015! OMG FANGIRL SPAZZ AIHLERSDFKJPOEWH;G[84Y9QTHE[0IOQJ;3WL4GTA;OVSIZLXJ /K**

**Anywho…**

**I had to write this. This is for Lexi123321. Her review made my day. So this very weak chapter is for you. **

**Disclaimer: Seriously… **

* * *

Finally, the available Justice League members had assembled: Superman, Wonder Woman, Flash, both Green Lanterns, Aquaman, Martian Manhunter, Green Arrow, Black Canary, Captain Atom, and Captain Marvel were all sitting impatiently, watching Batman. The Dark Knight's hands were steepled, his eyes closed as if he were deep in thought. All other members of the League were not present; most were on missions, while some were at events they couldn't escape from.

After several minutes of uninterrupted silence, in which no one new joined the assembled group, Flash broke the silence.

"Are you gonna tell us why you called an emergency meeting?" he said awkwardly. All heads but the Bat's turned to him. "I mean, is there-"

Batman's eyes flew open, and his furious gaze landed on the bumbling speedster, who instantly fell silent.

"Most of the assembled members are already aware of the situation regarding the Young Justice team. For those of you who are not, and for those of you who have already been informed, this is the summary of what happened tonight. And I suggest you pay attention, even if you already know," Batman's words were now directed on Flash, whose head had been snapping back and forth between Batman and the door as if watching a tennis match, "as the information I bring is some which you've not heard."

"Roughly two and a half hours ago, two alarms went off in Gotham. One was a bank heist involving masked robbers holding hostages, the other a hostage crisis on the other side of town. I could only complete one task, so I contacted the Young Justice team to take control of the other crisis. I chose the bank heist; the robbers were wearing clown masks, and as the Joker had just broken out of Arkham, I didn't want the team to take the chance of running into him.

"I instructed Robin to use the method of negotiating a simple hostage crisis that he and I normally use."

"Simple hostage crisis?" muttered Hal Jordan, but was silenced by a glance from the Dark Knight.

"In a normal situation, he would go in the back while I would go in the front. I would attack in the most obvious way available, while Robin would go in the most subtle way and free the hostages. When he informed me that the hostages were out of harm's way, we would take out their captors. To have the same method used by the team was an error of judgment on my part."

Everyone began to talk at once.

"That was the error of judgment? I think the error of judgment is attempting such a risky move in the first place!"

"Letting a kid do that; isn't that a bit risky?"

"What if he were to get shot?"

"What made you think that was a good idea anyway?"

"Does that ever even work?"

"I told him it was a bad idea; told him that it was stupid."

The only silent ones were Martian Manhunter and Superman, both of whom had locked gazes.

_He is upset,_ said J'onn, linking himself and Superman mentally.

_No kidding. He just admitted that he made a mistake. Bruce never does that._

Both of the calmer members of the League looked over at the usually composed Dark Knight. Bruce Wayne was beginning to become visible to those who knew him. A stressed, anxious look was on his face, although it was quickly becoming replaced with signs of a headache and anger.

Superman knew an explosion was coming from the Batman any second now. Bruce's face was suddenly wiped clean of emotion, leaving only anger. Slowly, the man got to his feet, seemingly on the verge of an outbreak.

Clark decided to intervene. "Would everyone please sit down and be quiet!" he shouted, his voice laced with anger.

The noise died down after a while, the Dark Knight still standing. Finally, he began to speak again.

"The situation was a trap. The Young Justice team, excluding Robin, went in the front to be met with a massive gathering of thugs and assassins who seemed to know the exact way to take every one of them out without making it apparent. Kid Flash was badly wounded, as was Zatanna. There is a possibility that she will become comatose in short order.

"The rest of the team emerged roughly unscathed."

"What about Robin?"

Bruce should have known it would be Diana to bring up the Boy Wonder. She'd been motherly towards him since she'd first met him.

He sighed and continued speaking. "Robin was also lured into a trap. Though the exact events are unknown as he was alone, Superboy heard him agreeing to trade his lives for those of others."

The room fell into hushed whispers of concern, muted when Batman began to speak again.

"The entire building has been searched. There is no sign of Robin."

Batman quickly sifted out what information he would share and what he would keep.

"Through what little evidence was left behind, I have deduced roughly what happened. Robin arrived upstairs and was apprehended. A canister of toxin had been positioned in the room where the rest of the team was. In order to save their lives, he sacrificed himself as a prisoner."

"Who took him?" Captain Atom's words.

"The Joker."

Chaos ensued once more. Bruce couldn't even focus enough to hear any words clearly. He simply sat there staring at the table, fists clenched tightly.

"We should go look for him." Batman was snapped out of his stupor by Black Canary's words.

"No."

"No?"

"There is no we. I will go look for him myself."

Ignoring the protests following him, he strode out of the room, leaving the rest of the Justice League in shock.

Bruce walked for a long time, just trying to get a grip on his emotions. Eventually, he found himself on a large observing deck looking out over the planet. His son was down there somewhere, in the hands of a madman. Who knew what the Joker was doing to him; he'd mentally scarred the child the first time they'd met face to face.

_Joker could be torturing him, and I have no idea where to look._

It was this thought that made him want to punch something, to just descend on Gotham's streets and beat the life out of every scumbag down there.

"Bruce?" A light hand touched his shoulder.

"What do you want, Diana?" He spun around to face her, shielding his emotions once more.

"Why won't you let us help?"

_It's my son; he's my responsibility. I have to find him. I have to scour the Earth right this instant, and I have to be the one to find him, because it won't be right if I don't. I have to save him; I can't lose someone else. _"You'd get in the way."

She arched an eyebrow at him, but he could see that his words had hurt her. "How so?"

"None of you know the Joker like I do."

"Then help us to know. Bruce, we care about him to. You aren't the only one in the world who's affected by this. The team, the League, and-"

"I never said you didn't care."

"Then stop pretending like we don't and let us help you."

Bruce closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. She was right. Superman had X-ray vision; Flash could run around the world in less than twenty minutes; Martian Manhunter could mentally scan for anyone anywhere.

But knowing Joker, he'd be keeping Robin in some obscure location underground in a building lined with lead, with a mental mask on the boy.

She placed a hand on his face, shaking him out of his thoughts. "Please, Bruce. Let us help you."

He opened his eyes and brushed past her.

"No."

* * *

**Stubborn Bruce and Daddy!Bats. Does that work for you?**

**AMAZINGLY FANTABULOUS INCREDIBLE PEOPLE WHO REVIEWED:**

**krikanalo: You sure got here fast… *checks watch* Six minutes. Dude, are you the Flash?**

**Lexi123321: Awesome! I think everyone's either gonna go "OMG THAT IS AWESOME I HAD NO IDEA" or "I should have known…" Awww, thanks. Dude, that's a bit much… o.O You make me feel like I'm disappointing you… Holy crud, I try, I really do. I will write as much as I can. I'm going to write one chapter tonight and dedicate it to you so when you wake up in the morning, you wake up to an update! I know, I'm literally trying to figure whether or not to just skip the plot and go write more torture… There's normal for ya…**

**lindz4567: Yup! And here's another one!**

**Up next: Robin's back...**


	10. Chapter 10

**Okay, so I got a message from Lexi123321 that tomorrow is her birthday, so instead of being a good person and working on band music or summer reading homework, I'm writing this. *dodges bullets from my mother***

**LOL, she doesn't even read this. She thinks it's a waste of my time…**

**ANYWHO, HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEXI!**

**I know the last one was for you too, but this is your birthday so… yeeaah… **

**Here is this short and cruddily written chapter as a present... Kinda rushed, but also short notice... Meh...**

**DISCLAIMER THINGY: Blah blah blah, I don't own it. **

* * *

He was bored. Not the _I'm-at-a-dinner-party-being-fawned-over-by-old-cre eper-ladies-and-stuck-in-an-uncomfortable-suit _kind of bored, but the _I'm-handcuffed-to-the-floor-and-I-can't-move-and-e very-time-I-try-I-start-to-bleed _kind of bored. Not that it was really classified as boredom, but that was the main emotion right now. He didn't know how long he'd been lying there, but he knew it had probably been a while.

A long while.

He couldn't move because it hurt and he just couldn't; it was dark so there was nothing to look at; there was no sound; there was no movement. And now he was hungry and really thirsty.

All in all, Robin was definitely not feeling the aster.

He'd fallen asleep a couple of times, but he kept jerking awake. Like he was being watched.

It was a ridiculous notion of course; he was completely alone.

_But the room is dark. There could be someone hidden in the shadows, watching you. And you'd never know it. And knowing Joker…_

He shook the thought out of his mind.

_They'll come. They're already looking for me. Bruce will get here any minute and yell at me for getting caught. Wally will freak out about me giving myself up, and make me swear never to do it again. Joker will go back to Arkham, and everything will go back to normal._

He took a deep breath and sighed. He hadn't tried to make any noise since the electrified-floor incident.

_Who electrifies their floors anyway?_

The boredom was finally starting to get to him, as was the complete lack of sight and sound. He had to do something… Anything really. Maybe even sound…

He never got the chance.

Suddenly, light filled the room. An obnoxious, blinding white light that lit up the room. The sudden light was too much of a change for the Boy Wonder, and he squinted his eyes shut. Just as soon as it had come on, it was off, then on. Like a high powered strobe light.

Then sound. Like that obnoxious substitute he'd had who'd drug her nails down the chalkboard to get their attention. Like a Canary cry. Like the sound of Styrofoam scraping against cardboard that always got on his nerves. That kind of sound, mixed with a high pitched whining that was giving him a headache after not even three seconds. He refused to cry out, despite the pain it was causing him.

The lights were pounding, the sound was throbbing, and then there was a rushing noise.

Through half-open eyes, Robin saw the source of the noise. And it almost caused him to panic.

Water was rushing towards him at an alarming rate, the fact made even more alarming by the quickly blinking light. It was coming closer and closer, the sound of the speeding water almost drowning out the piercing shriek. But it moved so quickly.

He hadn't even noticed that his back was wet before his entire body was covered in water. He wasn't even floating; he was just pinned to the floor, the water racing over him and filling the room.

Then the coldness hit him. Natural instinct took over and he gasped.

Water poured into his mouth, and he found himself coughing, unable to take in breath.

_Oh God; I'm drowning._

He tried to struggle against the darkness creeping around his vision, forcing himself to stay conscious if at all possible. Then he realized something else from the taste in his mouth.

It was salt water.

The pain hit him like the water. Anywhere the metal cuffs had bitten into him now burned and stung, causing him to struggle against the bindings. But that only made it worse, only used more air he didn't have, only reminded him that he was drowning.

A snap was heard through the water, through the darkness that was sinking in, and he found himself floating in the water, the pain in his cuts becoming almost too much for his pounding skull and freezing body. He was going to drown. He was going to die.

Suddenly, he was lying on the ground, rolling over and coughing, gasping for the sweetness that was air. He didn't even remember the waters receding. The lights were on permanently. He was pretty sure the horrible sound had stopped, but it still rang through his mind.

Coughs racked his body, and water came out of his mouth. It was a terrible feeling, too hard for his tired mind to relate to anything else. He rolled over again, lying flat.

The darkness was seeping into his brain again, contaminating his vision.

He wasn't dying. It was okay now, right?

"Awwww, you're no fun, Bird Boy. But what happens when you go to sleep?"

Maniacal laughter rang in the room, and he struggled against the inevitable to wake up.

_No! No, wake up! Stay awake! No!_

_It's not okay…_

Then his eyes slid shut.

* * *

**Once again, I had a moment where I could have stopped but didn't. I'm so mean…**

**That was so evil. Omigosh, I hate this chapter… :/ I don't think I did very well… **

**Meh, it was still fun! XD**

**FABTABULOUS FAVORITES/FOLLOWS: Dreamweaver56; Broken Antler in Winter; RaynaTonyStone; missIF; XxTheDeadlyBlackxX; Mikster22; fluffykitty12**

**AMAZINGLY FANTABULOUS INCREDIBLE REVIEWERS:**

**aurum88: Hmmm, review for chapter 4? You must have just started. Well, hop on the cliffy train; where it stops, nobody knows, but we ain't slowin' down. XD Thanks. I know, everyone does. Yes it was; good job. TOTALLY they should have done that. Thanks!**

** Ah, finally up to speed I see XD I KNOW! Try to stay whelmed though; it only gets more asterous from here. Or maybe disastrous (is that really how you spell it, autocorrect?), depending on how you look at it… I KNOW I LOVE IT TOO! Hahaha, you'll find out! I LOVE DADDYBATS! MWAUAUAUAHAHAAH SUSPENSE IS MY MIDDLE NAME! AND I'M NOT PSYCHIC, SO I CAN'T; I LET M'GANN DO THAT! I figured since you did caps lock, so would I. LOL Yay! Although I do think you should get some sleep… I try to… Hmmm, maybe you should. Y U NO READ MY MIND!? LOL! THANK YOU, THANK YOU! I LOVE YOU, RANDOM CITIZEN! *takes massive bow* LOL That made my day XD**

**wally i love u: And so there is. Isn't it marvelous?**

**Dreamweaver56: Thanks! I know! Suspense is amazing! Awww, thanks. At least I know I'm doing my job now XD Well, here ya go! Next chapter!**

**ForeverFallingx: Don't worry; asterous aurum88 wins the out of control award LOL Thanks! OMG You have no idea how much fun I have writing these Robin chapters… Superboy with Shields? Cuz if so, then I'm really scared. Otherwise I'll just go hug you. I think Superboy really just needs a hug sometimes…**

**RobinsReckoning: Neither can anyone else LOL I love DaddyBats… Fantabulous. Anywho, Robin's reckoning will be coming…. *insert evil laugh***

**Lexi123321: LOL YAY! Of course he's stubborn; he might be DaddyBats, but he's Batman first. Batman is STUBBORN! I feel bad for Diana though; he totally dissed her… Haha, I want them too; I'm incredibly eager to write the next one… LOL, okay! Haha IT WORKED! IT WORKED! *dances around in circles* I know XP Thank you! More to come! (I hope…)**

** Here ya go!**

**lindz4567: LOL, yup! Glad!**

** .Queen: LOL YAY! Thanks. Hmmm… He's not anywhere near safe…**

** I know. That's Bruce for ya. And why are you yelling at me; I was just as mad that he did that…**

**soccernin19: Dang bro, language… But yeah, I KNOW! LOL Good!**

**rlb190: Yup!**

**Kitte-Wolf: LOL, yup! Awesome; I keep thinking it's a mess, because I'm always so prepared to post stuff that I forget to proof it XD Oh, don't worry; there shall be much Daddy!Bats. The slap will not be necessary… *reaches for batarang***

**fluffykitty12: Awesome! Thanks. Of course more Bruce angst; it's fun to write. Ooooh…. I like the way you think… Very nice…**

**YourFavoriteCONTRACTOR: You're not even going to tell me what you contract? DX**

**Has anybody else watched Flashpoint Paradox yet?**

**Please review! It keeps me happy!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Well, Music Man is over. It was a load of fun, and I'm going to miss everyone I worked with. The whole cast was absolutely incredible!**

**I'm writing this chapter right now while we're on the road to Arkansas, and hopefully will be able to post it as soon as we get there. Band camp starts next week though, so I'm not sure how often updates will come after that.**

**This is me being sadistic again… It happens often…**

**Young Justice isn't mine. I can't come up with anything creative to say aside from that…**

* * *

His whole body was tingling. Except it wasn't a warm tingling feeling. It was a sharp, stabbing tingling that was spreading over his entire body, enveloping him in pain.

This is what Robin awoke to, and his eyes flew open with a gasp.

Several seconds later, the pain died down, and he was able to breathe once more. Air came in gasps as he dealt with the aftermath of electrocution. Again.

"Nothing like waking up to a nice taser, eh?" The Joker walked out of the shadows of the room. Robin suppressed a shiver and did a quick surroundings check.

He was in a kneeling position in the middle of a small room with tan walls. The half of the room directly in front of him was in shadow, too dark to see. A bright light hung over his head, illuminating everything else, including the door on his right. He was handcuffed as well, but everything else was unbound. It just hurt, so he decided that wasn't the time to be moving around. He also still had his mask and his gloves and boots, a huge relief.

"Yeah, it's great," he retorted sarcastically, forcing a half grin onto his face. "Where do you get your tasers? Batman and I might need to go shopping."

A massive smile spread over the Joker's face. "You're so much more fun than Batsy; he never makes jokes. He hardly even talks at all!" His voice lowered. "You're a much better play toy."

Robin resisted the urge to try and put more space between himself and the madman. He ignored (for now) what the Joker had just called him, and forced himself to appear calm. "I think I'll just take that as a compliment." He looked around the room again, trying to find anything that might prove a threat. There was nothing as far as he could see. "Nice room you've got here."

"Why thank you, Bird Boy. You like it better than your black box?"

"_My_ black box?" questioned the hero. "I think you have a pronoun confusion there; it's _your_ black box."

"Isn't that what I said?"

Robin rolled his eyes, not that it was visible behind his mask. "Whatever. Anyway, your 'black box' is lame. Definitely pressing."

The Joker's smile fell in confusion. "Pressing?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Robin's face spread into a huge grin. "Pressing: opposite of impressing. AKA, your room is unimpressive."

"Which one?"

"Both of them."

Joker put on a mock sad face. "Awww, but I thought you'd like this one better, Bird Boy! After all, it's much more colorful than the room you were in before."

The teen looked around the room again, dropping the smile. "Not really. It's just a different solid color; beige isn't really that great."

A grin spread across the face of the clown. "Oh, well I can fix that."

The Joker moved faster than he'd expected. In an instant, the psycho had him by the front of the shirt, and was pinning him against a wall. His hands were painfully crammed against the hard concrete. Then he saw what the Joker had in his spare hand.

It was a knife.

Instantly, Robin began to struggle, desperate to get away from the switchblade.

"Shh, shh, shh," hissed the Joker, pressing the flat edge of the blade to the young hero's face. Robin instantly fell still, though he still moved his head to the side, trying to get away from the knife on his left cheek. He stopped moving completely when the sharp side was pressed into his flesh.

He swallowed, and the Joker leaned in towards his ear. The acrobat closed his eyes, trying to calm himself.

"Almost like déjà vu, isn't it, Little Bird?"

Dick's eyes flew wide open as unwanted memories rushed back into his mind. The Joker's mad laugh rang in his ear, and the knife slid quickly down his face. Joker's hand released him, and he sank to the floor, fighting the same panic that had overwhelmed him at age nine.

_Come on, Grayson; get whelmed. You're not nine; you're better than that. You know what to do._

He took a deep breath to calm himself, and fixed the Joker with a level gaze. He removed a lock-picking device from his glove, and started to pick the lock on his handcuffs. The Joker stood in front of him, thoughtfully licking his blood off the blade. Dick gritted his teeth and fought the urge to be sick, focusing on the task of getting his manacles off instead of the disgusting man in front of him and the pulsing in his cheek.

"Now what am I going to do with you…" Joker turned back to his captive, a maniacal grin still etched across his face.

A loud click echoed through the room. Robin winced as the Joker glared sharply at him, a grin still on his face.

"What are you up to, Little Bird?" The Joker started to approach him. The cuffs were still on; they'd only loosened with the click. Dick began to work frantically now, knowing he'd only have one shot at escape.

The Joker's grin had become menacing now, the switchblade poised dangerously close to the bird. Then the Joker lunged.

The knife embedded in his upper arm. Dick hissed in a breath as pain shot through his left arm.

A click and a sharp snap rang through the room. The click was the handcuffs finally unlocking.

The snap was the Joker breaking off his trick knife and leaving the tip imbedded in Robin's arm.

Dick grunted in pain at the jolt of the weapon. Joker was laughing, walking away, examining the blunt edged weapon he was left with.

Robin got back to his feet, watching the retreating villain. His eyes wandered toward the door. Who knew what was on the other side of it. But if he was fast enough, and the Joker didn't see him…

He made a mad dash for the door, flinging it open and racing into the hallway. He had no idea where he was going, all he knew was that he needed to just go.

Right turn, left turn, another left turn, another right turn.

A dead end.

A dead end with a vent in the wall.

Robin leapt up and gripped the edge of the vent cover, pulling it down with a loud clatter.

"Harley, be a dear and make sure the Boy Blunder doesn't escape."

_This place has an intercom?_ thought Dick to himself. He shrugged and pulled himself into the vent.

He crawled along for about five minutes before he saw something of interest through the vent: an exit sign.

He dropped down from the vent and landed in the hallway below. To his right, at the end of a corridor, was a red door labeled "Emergency Exit."

_That was way too easy, _he thought to himself, cackling. Didn't it occur to the Joker that he might get out?

It didn't matter; he was free.

Robin started to sprint down the hallway, his laughter echoing with him. It was a relief to hear laughter that wasn't menacing for once, even if it was his own.

"HEY! BIRD BOY!"

Robin skidded to a stop, just a few feet from freedom, at the mocking voice. Harley Quinn stepped in front of the door, blocking the teen's escape. She had an oversized mallet slung over her shoulder.

"Lights out, Bird Brains."

The mallet swung forward and Robin felt pain exploding in his head. He felt himself knocked off his feet, and hit the floor hard before the world became black and he thought no more.

* * *

**FAVORITES/FOLLOWS: DreamweaverAki; romirola; PhoenixxFlame; Firebird29; FishInAFadora; dizzy101; grayson-lover-101; Itarily; Barbara Davis; Ninjarocker; Invader Abigail; LiveLove2Laugh; UndecidedGirl; foreverpatron; BlackWingsRedFeathers; **

**BLACKWINGSREDFEATHERS YOU ARE MY 100****TH**** FOLLOWER! THANK YOU SO MUCH! As a reward, PM me something you want me to include in the story, or another fic you'd like me to write XD**

**MY AMAZING REVIEWS:**

**krikanalo: Thank you. And 10 minutes, in the middle of the night? I give you points for dedication, my friend…**

**Broken Antler in Winter: It's good to have hope. Hope is good… And futile… *insert evil laugh* Hey, I try, okay? Hmmm…. So do people confronting Weeping Angels… o.O**

**Lexi123321: Of course! I didn't wanna let you down! Plus I was itching to write that anyways… Haha, isn't it marvelous? I'm glad you liked it. Happy Birthday!**

**iLeenOnTheWall: LOL You have your work cut out for you! Instead of writing five lengthy replies, I'm going to PM the first four, so look out! The rest of the PMs will come as soon as I get wifi…  
Yay! Well, yeah, ya do. Sorry about that. Haha, I laughed writing that. I figured he would be bored. And that's sorta what I based this off of. Chances are, he'll be back in his box again… I'll get back to your other reviews as soon as I can!**

**Box dude: Welcome to the Tribulation train, oh random guest who started reading. And cliffies are where you stop writing in a place where it just got exciting, or where there's more to be told. It's like you were writing the chapter, writing the chapter… and then the chapter was dumped off a cliff. Abrupt ending. Cliffy. Make sense?**

**randomkitty101: I'm glad you like it! Thanks!**

**RobinsReckoning: Yay! I try, I really do! But it's hard… LOL Impatient speedsters…**

**PhoenixxFlame: I'm glad you like it! I'm trying; I really am! Glad I can't disappoint you then LOL**

**SIERRAWOHLMAN: No kidding LOL**

**bookchomper101: Speechlessness! Glad you liked it so much. Isn't he? Thanks for the compliment. Hope you like this one!**

**lindz4567: Hmmm… Possibly… Good idea… Torture of course! TADA!**

**rlb190: Thanks! I'm honored! Can't wait to read yours!**

**Kitte-Wolf: I know! Camp… Yeesh! I won't tell anyone… Our little secret XD Hmmm… You do that, and I'll set a ticked off Nightwing on you… No, a very, very angry and worried DaddyBats. You don't want to see what he can do…**

**Firebird29: Thanks. I try! This was just floating around my head, so I wrote it. Thanks! I feel like I'm not doing justice sometimes, but I try as hard as I can to keep them in character… And depending on the series, that might not be an issue; (original) Teen Titans Robin was rather dark and moody. Can't wait to hear from you again!**

**Rose Terren: Weird how we all do, huh? I love writing them; way too much fun I think… Thanks! Glad you like it! I can't wait to get there either; not really sure what I'm going to do with it though… Oh well! We'll get there; I'll think of something… Yeah, Bruce is too stubborn for his own good. Thanks; glad you think so. I thought it was a bit off, but nice to have some feedback! No problem. I hate those… I try really hard to update at least once a week… Love hearing from new guys!**

**Guest: Thanks! Glad you like it! You need a better name than just "Guest" LOL**

**Invader Abigail:  
1. Wasn't that great! Loved it. Although wondering how what happened to Mary Wayne… Wonder if she became Joker… o.O  
2. I KNOW! ISN'T IT GREAT! I know; poor wally… Glad you like it! OMG SUGAR! *nom nom nom***

**Guest: Ummm…. Ooookaaaayyyy**

**nicedonenothing3: Ooooh, you just started… Welcome to the story XD**

**Fuschiaphoenix: LOL Is that good or bad?**

**Guest: Dang! People, give me a name! THERE'S TO MANY NAMELESS PEOPLE YEESH Anywho, I try, I'm trying!**

**Okay, either a bunch of you live on the complete opposite side of the world, or you all decide to review in the middle of the night… LOL That's a mystery…**

**Next up: Short chapter as a filler...**


	12. Chapter 12

**Guys, I'm at 100 Followers and 100 Reviews. THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR MAKING THIS POSSIBLE! And at only 11 chapters… YOU ARE ALL AMAZING AND FANTABULOUS!**

**Anywho, this chapter is more of a filler than anything… Just because I felt like I was spoiling you guys too much with Robin chapters…**

* * *

_Recognized: Batman: 02_

The lights died down in the old cave, leaving everything dark. As it was supposed to be.

Batman pulled off his cowl, striding into the Batcave. He walked right up to the computer and sat down in the chair, placing his head in his hands. A light hand rested on his shoulder.

"Batman?"

He shrugged the hand off. "What part of 'not tonight' didn't you understand?"

"Bruce, I'm sorry; I-"

"Forget it," he growled. "Go home; I'll contact you."

Footsteps retreated.

"You should really tell them, y'know." The engine of a motorcycle started up, and roared out of the cave.

Bruce sighed and closed his eyes. More footsteps approached.

"Master Bruce, I'm afraid I must agree with-"

"Alfred, I can't." Bruce opened his eyes and sat up to face his old friend.

"With all due respect, sir, Master Dick's team does have a right to know what has happened to him."

Bruce closed his eyes and ran his fingers through his hair. "Alfred, they aren't ready for that."

The old butler raised an eyebrow. "Ready for what, sir?"

Bruce handed him a slip of paper from his utility belt. Alfred read it quickly, his eyes wide.

The Dark Knight looked away from him, instead turning to the computer in front of him. He typed for a short while before two reports were pulled up: one, the police report from Akrham; one, the report he'd just made of the team's mission.

"It was the Joker," he said in response as Alfred handed him back the paper, looking paler than he had before. "Everything was so similar to Arkham."

Two pictures were pulled up: One was of the eight bodies from the old building; the other was a hallway at Arkham, strewn with bodies.

"All the innocents were killed the same way; slit across the neck, then carved with the letter R."

Bruce took a deep breath to calm himself, but it wasn't working. An R across the chest; that had so obviously been an aim at Robin, at his _son. _

In fury, he lashed out and threw a fist at the screen. It shattered at his touch, sending a maze of cracks all across the now useless monitor.

"I should have known!" he shouted. "I knew the Joker was after Dick; I should have made him stay back."

"He would never have stayed, Master Bruce. You know that."

"That shouldn't have stopped me from trying." Bruce closed his eyes, biting back tears.

"Master Bruce…"

"I have work to do, Alfred." He brushed past his butler, headed for the depths of the Batcave.

"Master Bruce." Alfred placed a hand on his shoulder.

"What, Alfred?" He spun around to face the older man.

"Don't push us away just because he's gone. If I know you, and I do, you've already refused the help of the Justice League." Bruce looked down slightly guiltily. "They don't deserve that, Master Bruce; they're only trying to help you, as am I. Don't push his friends away either; they can help you more than you know."

"I know Alfred, but-"

"Master Bruce, they can't help you if you won't let them know what's happened."

They locked eyes for a minute, silence passing between them.

"I'll let them know as soon as I know exactly what happened." Bruce shrugged Alfred's hand off his shoulder with those words, walking further away.

The hand returned to his shoulder, and he turned around.

"Sooner, Master Bruce."

Bruce fixed Alfred with a Batglare, staying stubbornly resolute as a young child. But Alfred countered the glare with a cool gaze that spoke of no disagreement, and finally, Bruce sighed.

"Sooner."

Then he vanished into the shadows.

* * *

**YAY ALFRED! YOU SHOW BRUCE WHO'S BOSS! Sorry, I love Alfred. He makes good cookies ^.^**

**Anywho, I guess this was less of a filler than I thought. The next one will (unfortunately) probably not be Robin. Yet. We'll get there. **

**That one was amazingly short… Yeesh**

**FAVORITES/FOLLOWS: Ortholeine; auPHE; Ahsoka Grayson; KradNibeid**

** .Queen: LOL I know. Harley does whatever her puddin' tells her to. Of course he wouldn't XD Hope you like this!**

**FishInAFadora: Hope I do!**

**Rocketeer101: No worries there; I haven't even started…**

**grayson-lover-101: Awesome! I saw the sickness one on your page, but I can't seem to find grayson_lover_98…  
YOU ARE MY 100****th**** REVIEWER! PM me with a request, either for this story or another one!**

**ForeverFallingx: I try! I try! Thanks! End up nice… *gulp* Hehe, about that…**

**krikanalo: Hey, I have no problem with that! Glad you liked it!**

**Broken Antler in Winter: In my defense, it's sorta DaddyBats and it was necessary… We're getting there; I promise…**

**Lexi123321: No, I don't think it was; I smiled while writing it… No prob! Awww, thanks a ton!**

**UndecidedGirl: Because it's fun! *insert Joker laugh* Yup! Yeah, just the tip of the blade though.; it could be worse…**

**Ortholeine: You're not? Dang… Too graphic? Take pleasure? … *no comment*  
Anyway, thanks so much for that compliment; it means a lot. I intend to keep this as close to cannon as possible, so neither possibility will happen entirely. Come close? Probably. But not completely. And I agree with that. Thanks for the review!**

**Kitte-Wolf: Bipolar? How so? I am a wind player, and my face will die. It will be awesome. *gulp* NOT BIGBROTHER!ROY! That's scary bro… Oooh, now I have to go read that… You've made me curious…**

**FantasizeDayDreams: Haha, sorry. Not really… Glad you love it! Thanks! I'll try!**

**lindz4567: I know! Everybody seems pretty mad about that… Sorry LOL**

**RobinsReckoning: Okay! I love Harley! I know, she's great. XD Careful not to wear a hole in the floor…**

**iLeenOnTheWall: Yeah, they really have. It's great. Okay. Replyception… LOL true. And I came up with that idea on my own, I just hadn't planned on using it the way you mentioned, although I like your idea better. So I came up with the same concept, I guess…  
Oh, thanks XD Yeah, we all are. Haha, I had fun coming up with that. That was the first thing I thought of. I figured I should show some mutilation of English from Robin, and the first thing I thought of was, "What's the opposite of impressed? Pressed!" So much fun… and yeah, poor kiddo… True, but you never know how desperate one will get…  
I know, poor baby… And maybe even past then…**

**Ahsoka Grayson: First, I want to say how much I like your username. Ahsoka is great; a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away… I mean, a long time ago, I had a Clone Wars fanfic written. I have it somewhere in my old files though. Anywho, I'm glad you like it so much! Welcome to the cliffy ride! I'm glad you like it! Most impressive, yes… I can't wait until band camp starts up, although it's going to be really hot. Dang; yours is short: ours is 9:00 to 12:00, and then again from 1:00 to 5:00 in the evening, I think. We don't do weekends though, thank goodness. Alrighty then! I'll see you then!  
LOL, nice signature!**

**Evie: Aww, thanks!  
*backs away slowly and picks up the phone* Yeah, Arkham? I think I found you a new patient…  
LOL! Was this fast enough?**

**I LOVE YOU ALL! Thank you all so much for all your reviews and follows and favorites, and for all of you who are reading this! YOU'RE ALL AMAZING!**


	13. Chapter 13

**UndecidedGirl's description of Bruce made my day: "…Bruce gosh darn you, people are trying to help you! You're just like the grouchy husband who refuses to ask for directions…" Priceless.**

**Anyways… *ducks from the angry reviewers* I'm so amazingly sorry for the slow update; band camp is my only excuse. I hope this meets everyone's expectations.**

**DISCLAIMER: If I owned Young Justice, I wouldn't be doing band camp. Scratch that; I'd still be doing band camp. But I'd have a lot more free time…**

* * *

The first sound he registered was a high-pitched, very boring _beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!_

It sounded a lot like a heart monitor to him.

Very slowly, Wally opened his eyes. Almost instantly he shut them again. He'd just been attacked by the color white, if that was even possible.

_What's white and beeps annoyingly?_ he asked himself, but then stopped: that was a riddle, and he didn't want to deal with riddles right now. Riddles made his brain hurt. Robin, of course, could solve them in a split second, but he…

Wait….

Robin.

_I'm sorry._

Why was he sorry?

Ultimately, that was what made the exhausted speedster decide not to go back to sleep. Besides, how was he supposed to with that obnoxious beeping noise?

Now he could pick up on another sound. People were talking in low voices, but their words were muted and blurred and very hard to understand. He opened his eyes slowly, trying to adjust to the bright light and pick up on some of the words at the same time.

"-two days already and he's found nothing. And Bruce won't tell us anything more. He's hiding something; I know it." That was a woman's voice. It was familiar, but he couldn't put a name to it right now.

"Don't sweat it; he'll find him; he always does. He won't be missing for long." That voice was very familiar. He knew exactly who that was.

"Uncle Barry?" he muttered, his voice hoarse and cracking. The next second, the violently red speedster was leaning over him. Wally closed his eyes against the sudden onslaught of color, but then almost instantly opened them. He needed answers. "What are you guys talking about?" he croaked.

"Doesn't matter," he brushed off. "How ya feeling, kiddo?" Barry Allen pulled his cowl down, exposing his blonde hair to the world.

Wally knew he wasn't going to answer his question, so he just shrugged. He instantly regretted it, the motion having shot pain through his torso. "I've been better," he replied in a raspy voice.

"I bet," muttered the Flash, looking with concern at his protégé. In a split second, he was gone and back again, this time with a chair. He sat down next to his nephew, running his fingers through the youngster's ginger mop.

"What time is it?" asked Wally, closing his eyes and relaxing a bit. He felt his uncle's hand leave his head for a minute and then got his response.

"About two in the morning."

Wally's eyes flew open. "Uncle Barry, Aunt Iris will kill you for being out this late! She'll be so mad at you…" Above all else, Wally feared his aunt's wrath; on more than one occasion she'd become furious with Barry for staying out past twelve o'clock. "Only Batman is crazy enough to do that," she'd said.

The older speedster grinned down at the younger. "She'd be madder if I hadn't been here for you while you were unconscious."

The redhead's eyes scrunched up in confusion. "Wait, how long was I out?" His voice was getting stronger now, sounding less wispy and more firm.

"About two days." It took Wally a second to realize that his uncle hadn't said that. He turned his head to the side and saw someone else standing there. It was a woman with long black hair, and her forehead sparkled.

Wait, what?

"That long?" He was still trying to figure out who the woman with the sparkly forehead was. She nodded, and the sparkles moved with her. Then he realized the sparkles were part of a sort of crown… thing.

"Do you remember anything about what happened?" she asked, walking a bit closer to him. Oh, now he knew who she was: Wonder Woman.

He furrowed his eyebrows, trying to remember. Something about a warehouse, and a bunch of people attacking him, kissing Artemis on the cheek… He blushed and decided not to mention that part. He remembered somebody dangling off Miss Martian's shoulder. No, leaning. Black hair, long…

"Zatanna," he whispered. He swallowed and raised his voice a bit. "What about Zatanna? Is she okay?"

"She's still unconscious, but alive," answered Wonder Woman.

Wally closed his eyes, racking his memory for anything else. How could he have forgotten so much?

_I'm sorry._

"Where's Robin?" he asked, looking from the speedster to the heroine. The older heroes exchanged glances, both gazes showing apprehension.

Wally cleared his throat, ignoring the searing pain brought on by doing so. "Where. Is. Robin," he questioned, his voice much stronger now.

Neither hero even acknowledged that he'd spoken, still staring at each other as if holding a silent debate.

"Uncle Barry." He tugged on the sleeve of his mentor, who turned to look at him. "Uncle Barry, where is Dick?"

Barry instantly turned back to Diana.

"I'll go tell the team he's awake," she offered, and then she stepped out of Wally's line of sight. Barry ran his fingers through his hair, still watching the door Wonder Woman had just left through. Sighing, he stood up.

Wally pushed himself into a sitting position. As soon as he'd done so, he regretted it; the entire left side of his body exploded in pain, a fiery agony running up his side. He cried out in pain and clenched his eyes shut, trying to remember how to breathe without feeling pain.

Two gentle hands were on his shoulders, easing him back to the bed.

"Probably not a good idea yet," came his uncle's voice. The fire in his chest died back down a bit when he hit the bed again, but he kept his eyes shut. Wally felt pressure on the bed next to his thigh and opened his eyes again. His uncle had seated himself next to him, and was now staring at him.

Wally watched his eyes, a lesson he'd learned from Robin.

_Always watch people's eyes, KF; they tell you the most about a person._

_What do mine tell you?_

… _You're insecure about something._

Barry's eyes held hesitance, guilt… and something akin to shame.

"Uncle Barry…"

"Wally, I… Oh gosh…" The elder speedster ran his fingers through his hair. He suddenly looked as if he'd gained twenty years.

"Uncle Barry, you're scaring me," whispered Wally. "What's. Wrong?"

Flash sighed. "Kid, there's something I need to tell you…"

The door to the room burst open, causing Barry to get instantly to his feet and pull his cowl up.

"Wally!" A greenish blur soared into the room, capturing Wally in a tight hug. Said speedster cried out in pain, and the arms released him. "Omigosh, I'm so sorry; that was really stupid of me, I shouldn't have done that; hello Megan!"

"Give him some space, M'gann," came another female voice. The Martian girl backed up to reveal the rest of his team standing there, minus three members. Only two were accounted for…

Flash's hand randomly jumped up to his ear. "This is Flash; go ahead."

Several seconds of silence passed before he replied. "Got it; on my way. Flash, out." He removed his hand and turned to the confused teens. "Sorry Kid; duty calls."

"At two in the morning?" asked Artemis skeptically.

Flash shrugged. "Crime never sleeps."

"That's incredibly cheesy," muttered Wally, but fixed his Uncle with a look that said _We're-not-done-talking._

"You've had worse," said the League member, nodding his affirmation to his nephew's unspoken words. "Back in a flash!" With that, he sped out of the room.

"Does he always say that?" asked Aqualad calmly.

Wally and Artemis nodded.

"It got old after the first…" Artemis thought for a minute.

"Three hundred times," finished Wally, rolling his eyes.

After a few minutes later and several check-up questions from his team mates, Wally spoke the question that had been consistently on his mind. "Where's Rob?"

All four of his team mates exchanged worried looks.

"Why does everyone keep doing that!?" he shouted, and Artemis turned back to look at him.

"Wally…" There was a tense silence for a while, and after a few minutes, Artemis turned and pointed a finger at Aqualad.

_They're having a mental conversation…_ he realized.

Finally, Artemis made a sound of disgust and turned to the injured speedster, who finally noticed the bruise on her cheek. "Wally, listen, about Robin… He's-"

A bloodcurdling scream cut her off. A very close, very loud, very pained scream.

"ZATANNA!" shouted Artemis. The four able teens ran out of the room, leaving Wally with the obnoxious beeping and even more unanswered questions.

* * *

**Ooooooh, cliffy… If you'd like, I can make a one-shot out of Wally and Dick's conversation about eyes… I think that'd be fun, but only if you guys would like to read it XD**

**FAVS AND/OR FOLLOWS: InvestigatingLove78; SIERRAWOHLMAN; Pikuni Kon; rainydays42; Corie101; Artemis is awesome; FireWriting; YoungJustice4ev3r; fluffsterzz; Sock puppets r real; Akinio; doublem9327; Ar1ana; R. Grayson**

** .Queen: Dude, do you just sit there and wait for me to update? LOL! Anywho, thanks, I guess… And I know. But of course that didn't stop him from trying… I had to drag Alfie in there…**

**krikanalo: Thanks! I thought it would just end up being a major filler, but I was wrong…**

**Lexi123321: Alfred is just boss. Nothing more to it. Yeah, that's true… Some chapters need some and there aren't… I can't stand those; too much action, no plot… *tear* Anywho, you don't? LOL Yeah, that's coming; no worries! Awww, thanks. Dude… Obsession isn't strong enough… Yeesh. Yeah, I think I need to make a phone call… Hi, Arkham? **

**Firebird29: *cowers* Please don't hate me for the fillers! They just come out!  
And thank you! I figure that you can never go wrong with Daddy!Bats. Yeah, I love those cliffies! Haha, no prob! Glad I can help! *goes to stalk your page…***

**Broken Antler in Winter: YAY! IT'S WORKING!**

**Ahsoka Grayson: Heeeyyy, you're back! Anywho, I know! He needs to get over that… LOL He wouldn't be Batman if he weren't amazingly stubborn. "OMG, BATMAN YOU'RE BLEEDING!" "I'll be fine… *death glare of doom*" I know, he needs some help… LOL BIRDNAPPED! USING THAT! You're trying to comfort a fictional character… You sound like me, LOL  
I will! And with you!**

**lindz4567: Glad you liked it so much! It's great, isn't it?**

**Kitte-Wolf: Bon Jovi is amazing! NO NOT HIM! GAH! Oooh, I'm gonna read that. As soon as summer reading is out of the way; I have to get that done first!**

**soccernin19: Glad somebody's enjoying it XD**

**Guest: Ummm… yeah….**

**SIERRAWOHLMAN: I KNOW RIGHT! Yesh, he did.**

**iLeenOnTheWall: You're the first person to mention that… Very nice. Yes, they are the same person. However, I will not tell you whether your guess was right or wrong. I do like the way you think though… Very clever. LOL True about Batman…  
I love Alfred. He's just too cool.  
Awww, thanks. LOL, the Joker… Haha, I heard it referenced in one of the Batman Beyond episodes. Terry got locked in one of those, but he broke himself out… Clever boy.  
I know, it's great! I know, I feel bad for Robin too… Yeah, I did decide that. Joker's just going a little overboard… IT'S NOT MY FAULT!  
Hmmm…. It's like you read my mind there…**

**chibi piri tan: LOL YAY SUSPENSE! Thank you so much! That means a lot to me; it really does. AND THANK YOU FOR THE SUGAR! WHEEEE SUGAR HIGH!**

**RobinsReckoning: I know; Alfred's great. He's just too cool! Thanks. LOL *throws down a box of Oreos* THERE! HAVE SOME COOKIES, YOU NUTTY SPEEDSTER! XD**

**UndecidedGirl: I wish he showed up more often; he's amazing. No, he doesn't. He really doesn't. LOL They'd all die. Bruce like eight times over LOL  
Bruce is just too stubborn…. XD HAHA I LIKE THAT ANALOGY!**

**Guest: Yup!**

**Corie101: Awww, thanks so much. I personally don't read those, so I wouldn't know LOL**

**Rose Terren: YAY! A good surprise, I hope. I know, aren't I good at this? XD Anywho, yeah I be that would. And Bruce definitely needs a good slap anyways. But kudos to Alfred for not slapping him; Bruce would have gotten more than his fair share of smacks were I in Alfred's place. Thanks!**

**3DPhantom: I KNOW IT'S SO EXCITING I CAN'T WAIT! I know… Way too far away…**

** He would have gotten more than his fair share of smacks were I in Alfred's place. Thanks!**

**3DPhantom: I KNOW IT'S SO EXCITING I CAN'T WAIT! I know… Way too far away…**

** Yeah, sorry; I'm kinda slow… No, please don't go insane; Arkham's getting sick of my phone calls. LOL I'll throw you a floaty XD And I have no idea what that's from… Sorry LOL**

**Evie: Ummm…. Don't be a criminal anyways LOL And I really try… Band camp is my excuse…**

** Yes, that's true…**

**PhoenixxFlame: I know he would be! Can you imagine Bruce, sitting there stitching up his costume in the middle of the night? LOL Anywho, I'm trying!**

**aurum88: I know! It's great XD I love British people; they're so awesome. And I shall not tell you if your guess is correct, but you're the first person to guess that, so way to think outside the box (or inside the box, since it's bigger on the inside…). Haha, your brain has never been truly frazzled until you've watched Inception. That is all I have to say. LOL OMG THAT WAS GREAT! LOL Hey, no prob. And totally. Awesome! Thanks!**


	14. Chapter 14

**Sorry, this one took me a while too… **

**My mom started reading this. She got mad at my cliffies, and then insisted that I update. She actually came upstairs and found me on my computer, then said, "You'd better be working on that darn Batman story!"**

**So she finally came around… HI MOM! **

**LOL I don't own Young Justice. I just don't. I'm going to go sulk in a corner now…**

* * *

Dick bolted upright in the darkness, gasping for breath. He swallowed hard, trying to clear his mind. He hated nightmares. He'd just had one, the same one he'd had for years. Not his parents, but the Joker. Of course, that was on top of the one he'd had just before it, where the Joker had kidnapped him instead of killing his team mates.

But it was just a dream, of course.

He reached up to wipe the sweat off his brow, but halfway through the motion, pain erupted in his left arm, the one he'd been using. His free hand instantly grasped the source of the pain. Something wet and sticky now coated his fingers.

He didn't have gloves on.

He was bleeding.

He was back in the black room.

It wasn't a dream.

He gritted his teeth against the pain, feeling something wet running down his face. Sweat? That was weird, considering how cold it was. He did another surroundings check.

No belt, no gloves, no shoes, so therefore, no weapons. And he wasn't cuffed. In fact, he wasn't even pinned down. And he still couldn't see anything.

Why did his arm hurt so badly? What had he done to-

That's right. He hadn't. Joker had stabbed him, and left the point of the blade in his arm.

At least that's what his memories told him. The logical side of his mind insisted that there was no way that could have happened. Unless the tip of the blade had gotten caught in his bone (which he was pretty sure hadn't happened), nothing would have been broken off. The tip might have taken a chunk out of his arm, but it wouldn't have broken or stayed put.

The only conclusion he could come up with was that the blade had been a trick blade, and the point of the knife had been designed to come off. Perforated, maybe, so it would easily come off?

It didn't really matter.

Robin delicately fingered his wound, trying not to make the injury any worse than it already was. It wasn't very long or wide, but it was definitely deep. Also, the blade point was still wedged in there.

The irrational, fearful side of his brain told him that now he had a weapon, if he needed it. The logical, unclouded side of his brain reminded him that if he did pull it out, a waterfall of blood would follow.

The negative voice of wisdom in his mind recalled that if he knew the Joker (and he did), he was going to need all the blood he could get.

He shoved that last thought out of his mind and wiped some of the sweat off his forehead with the back of his wrist, trying not to get too much blood on his forehead. His face was soaked with the thick, sticky, hot liquid that was sweat.

Wait. That wasn't right.

It wasn't sweat coating his face.

It was blood.

Dick started wiping the blood already on his hand off on his pants. As soon as he thought he'd gotten enough of it off – he really couldn't tell in the darkness – he reached up to his head to find where the source of the blood flow was. Gently running his fingers along his head, he found that the back of his head was soaked with blood, most of his hair clumped together with the sticky substance.

He grimaced. What was that from?

Oh yeah.

Harley's mallet.

_Alfred's gonna have a field day with this…_ he thought to himself.

Alfred…

Bruce.

Bruce was coming. Bruce was going to find him. It wouldn't be much longer now; Bruce never lost any time trying to find him. In a matter of hours, Batman would come bursting through the building, take him home, and have the Joker locked up in Arkham again.

The room was filled with a sharp, fast hissing sound. Robin scanned his brain, trying to think of what could be making that noise.

His head was getting heavy. He lay back down on the floor, this time on his side to avoid aggravating his head injury.

He finally recognized the sound.

Gas.

He tried to force his eyes open, to stay conscious past the sinking feeling he was getting, as if he were dropping away from the world. The sound became loud, so loud that he wanted to cram his hands over his ears to try and block it out, but he couldn't move any part of his body. It was all just so heavy…

The sound faded away, and all thought faded out of his mind. He was losing the fight to stay awake.

He let his eyelids droop shut, too tired to fight it any longer.

* * *

**I really didn't like that one so much... Oh well, the next one should be better… You let me know:**

**Another Robin chapter?**

**OR**

**What happened to Zatanna?**

**Favorite/Follow people: Ryir; roochi03; DeadPool1300; Foxwox; IceFire 27; theSardonyx; Nightwing Lady; janrockiss; Aranel43; courtz24; .Soul; Kazeneko-san; **

**My amazing reviews that inspire me to keep writing:**

** .Queen: LOL I'll try to write that asap. Yeah, go figure… I dunno either LOL It'll be a discovery for both of us. Nope, I had no idea XD**

**3DPhantom: Hehehe, you know Bruce… That's gonna go over well. Yeah, poor Zee… I'll try! Glad you loved it!**

**FantasizeDayDreams: I'll try… I have many things to try with that one… oooh, Alfred's cookie… And shut up Dick; you've been kidnapped, and I'm in control of what happens to you… Do not… Awww, crud; puppy dog eyes…**

**krikanalo: Eh, I've been around. Thanks :)**

**Jesters of the Moon: I'll try that… It'll be fun!**

**DickGraysonForever: Awww, thank you! That means a ton! Hahaha, yesssss, Robin torture XD And you will find out… I just picked Dick over Zee for now… We'll get there; no worries. And I love you, random citizen!**

**Kitte-Wolf: Ooookay. Works for me LOL**

**Emiko Sora: Cliffies are amazing! I KNOW I KNOW I KNOW! YEESH! And thanks so much!**

**roochi03: I think you're new here… Welcome to the story XD Hiya! Yeah, poor dude… He'll figure it out. Awwww, thank ya. And I love Wally two, which is why I currently hate the Young Justice people (although that's only part of it…) but it's okay, because he's just in an alternate dimension like Rose so he'll come back. Ah, I knew you were a first-timer. Hope you like the rest of it. What is sigue asi? I hope so too! And no prob. That's way cool, btw. It's hard to learn a new language, so kudos to you! Bai!**

**Guest (dragonfire-wolfgirl): Oh my Cheshire? That's a new one XD I think you're new too, since you signed it as dragonfire-wolfgirl… Thanks for the awesomeness support! I'm glad you like it so much! Awww, thank you! YAY COOKIES! *nom nom nom***

**Broken Antler in Winter: Dude, this is part of the plot! And you can't have sheer action. There has to be a little bit of downtime in there…**

**DreamweaverAki: Thank ya. And okay! Very what? It got cut off… There's just a space there where words should go LOL! And holy crud dude, go to bed yeesh! I'll update asap!**

**UndecidedGirl: True dat. That would actually make a highly amusing fanfic… LOL, I don't think she meant to… And I'm always right, because I'm the author LOL JK Yes, you did humor me; that made my freaking day. And I will get right on it!**

**randomkitty101: Awesome! Lots of people wanted that! I will! Haha, no. I will leave you in so much suspense, you come find me and kill me for the cliffy XD**

**PhoenixxFlame: LOL, we'll try that next time XD yeah, no kidding. Poor dude; it's his brother! LOL YAY MINI RANT! Thanks, and I'll try!**

**weehoodie: Ooh, you're new! Welcome! And yeah, I thought so too… But she's also probably a bit panicky, and she was OOC in Homefront, so I figured it was okay… Thank ya! Hope you like the rest as well!**

** Oooh, look at you! Back already! That's certainly interesting… Nobody's guessed that before…**

**Lexi123321: Yay? What are you laughing at this time? WHAT DID I DO!? LOL Hiya. I know, a lot of people would do that. But he's tired, and that woulda hurt. Thanks! I am too. I'd be in bed at 9 (I know; so early!) about to sack out and thinking, "Awww, man; I could be updating Tribulation! But I never did, because I needed the freaking sleep. I'm glad! Okie! I'll get right on it! I can't either XD**

**RobinsReckoning: Thank you, will do, and I'm working on it! Thanks, I'll try! Ooooh, I'll help *grabs a crowbar***

**theSardonyx: Thank you. Well, that's a good thing. I hope it was soon enough for you. We'll all find out; I haven't even decided yet LOL! Well, I haven't gotten there yet… Don't worry; I'm not done yet.**

**Nightwing Lady: Yay! Glad you like it so much! Hope you stay with us! I will!**

**lindz4567: Because cliffies; that's why. LOL Thanks! Here ya go!**

**soccernin19: Thanks! I know, I needed some spitfire…. I feel bad for him though LOL Nobody wants to tell him XD I love my cliffies and here ya go!**

**Ahsoka Grayson: Hey look! You're back XD I will work on that one ASAP. Okie! And may the Force be with you as well :)**

**Hopefully the next update will be much sooner, but school just started, so we'll see…**


	15. Chapter 15

**OMG I'M SO SORRY! IT'S BEEN LIKE, WEEKS, AND I'M AMAZINGLY SORRY THAT I HAVEN'T UPDATED AND I FEEL SO BAD SHAME SHAME SHAME!**

**Okay.**

**Life is like… A mess. School hit me hard. And then band, and stress and crap…**

**And now I have some sort of weird…. Sickness? I dunno what it is, but it makes me dizzy and incoherent, so I'm not at school. So I sat down to write. Fabulous idea on my part, yeah? LOL**

**We'll see how this goes…**

**I had two requests on this chapter, coming from various people. One was a demand to know what happened to Zatanna, and the other was demanding to have a Robin chapter. One of my closest friends in real life yelled at me for my "stupid cliffies", and told me that "you'd better do a Robin chapter; Zatanna can wait."**

**So you have her to thanks for this XD**

**DISCLAIMER: YOUNG JUSTICE is not mine. This plotline, however, is mine. Mostly. I think…**

* * *

A sharp pain fired through his skull. His eyes flew open and he gasped, and at the same time, water entered his lungs. It was disgusting, a salty, irony taste. He started coughing, then began throwing his head up to get out of the water.

He couldn't. As best he could tell, somebody had a hand wound into his hair, which was what was forcing him under.

To make matters worse, the back of his head was throbbing, and his left cheek burned furiously. His vision was becoming dark at an alarmingly fast pace.

His head was yanked out of the water, and he felt the relief of fresh air on his face. He took great gasps of air before he started coughing, the movement racking his body as foul tasting water flew out of his mouth. He closed his eyes, focused on regaining the ability to breathe normally, instead of in the coughing gasps he was now taking.

The hand in his hair forced him backwards, bending him back in a way most humans weren't designed to go. He reached up to remove the hand from his head, but found that he couldn't. His hands were cuffed.

"Aw, I guess that didn't work so well. It was supposed to wake you up, Bird Boy, but your eyes are still closed. Oh well; I guess we'll just have to try again…"

Mad laughter filled his ears before Robin was forced forwards again. His eyes flew open and he took a breath at the last possible second before his head was forced under the water again. This time though, he was prepared.

He stopped trying to struggle, figuring that whoever had a grip on him wasn't going to let go. He knew now that he was on his knees, and that the ground underneath him had patterned indents. (his cheek was starting to burn again… Stop thinking about that!) Best he could tell, he was kneeling on a tiled floor, the tiles being one inch tiles.

The container holding the water (how much longer was he going to be able to hold his breath? Focus…) was a large… tub was the only word he could think of to describe it. It was white, and he was bent over the edge of it. All of this put together… Was he in a bathroom?

He was running out of breath. He started to struggle, thrashing against the hand pinning him. His vision was coming in waves now, even though he estimated his time under the water to be only around thirty five seconds. The hand in his hair tightened, the grip becoming stronger, and intensifying his already massive headache. His throat was burning now, and the pounding in his head was ridiculous.

His head was forced further under the water, until Robin felt as if he were about to fall entirely into the liquid. His body was desperate for air, and instinct was taking over.

He exhaled, unwillingly, feeling the precious oxygen brush past his face as it leapt for the surface. He fought his body's urge to take breath. But the need to breathe was greater than his self-control.

The repulsive water forced its way down his throat, and he started coughing. His vision officially turned dark, and he felt himself fading.

He was pulled harshly out of the water again, and this time, the hand released him. He was thrown backwards, and landed painfully on his cuffed hands. His body gasped for air, water falling from his mouth at the same time.

"Awww… Did it not work a second time? I guess we'll have to try something else…"

Dick threw his eyes open in time to see a foot flying towards him. It hit him in the left side of the chest, hard, sending him against a wall he hadn't seen.

He kept coughing, more pains coming to his attention. His wrists hurt, his ankles throbbed, his chest ached and felt bruised, his head was pounding, his cheek burned, and his left arm was on fire. The worst part? He really wasn't sure why.

He closed his eyes as his coughing became more violent. Then he felt himself being drug upwards by the front of his shirt.

Robin's eyes flew open, and he found himself face to face with the Joker.

"Are we awake now, Boy Blunder?"

His breath was disgusting, hot on his face. Robin fought the urge to cringe, instead choosing to focus on the mirror over Joker's shoulder. It was above a sink… He was definitely in a bathroom.

"I don't know," he muttered. "Haven't quite figured that out yet…"

Joker let go of him, letting him fall back to the floor. "Oh Bird Boy, you're so much fun! Of course, you take simply forever to wake up."

"Well, if you didn't keep knocking me out, you'd avoid that problem, wouldn't you?" Dick slowly got to his feet, not quite sure whether he'd be able to keep his balance or not. The Joker was facing away from him.

"Hmmmm…." The Joker stroked his chin thoughtfully. Dick, keeping his eyes glued on the back of his ugly purple suit, brought his hands in front of him, feeling the handcuffs for any weakness he might be able to exploit. "You're right, Bird Brains!" In a sudden, swift motion, the Joker spun around and pinned Robin against the wall.

By his neck.

"What would I do without you, Bird Boy?" His laughter rang out through the room, a smile etched across his face.

For the third time since he'd woken up, Robin struggled to get breath into his lungs. The Joker pressed hard against his throat, blocking any air from getting in. The Boy Wonder tried with all his might to pull away the hand on his throat, but his efforts were futile.

The Joker's grin grew, and he slowly lifted Robin off his feet. Dick's eyes widened and he fought to keep some part of himself on the ground. Only his toes were touching after a few seconds.

The edges of his vision were turning dark. He tried to struggle out of the Joker's grasp, but his hand was to strong, and the wall wasn't giving at all. Just when he was sure he was about to pass out, the Joker kicked open the door to the bathroom they were in.

It caved easily, splintering away at the Joker's foot. Then he hurled Robin out of the room.

Dick felt himself moving through the air. Normally, he liked flying, but this… This wasn't flying. Because when he flew, he was in control. But he wasn't flying. It wasn't his choice.

There was a staircase just beyond the bathroom, lined up directly with the shattered door. Robin tried to catch himself as he soared towards it, but he couldn't. He fell roughly down it, landing painfully at the bottom.

The pain in his chest had just increased significantly, probably because he'd landed on his already injured left side. He moaned slightly before rolling over – slowly – to his uninjured side.

He wasn't facing the stairs. Instead, he found himself face to face with a door. Cold air was seeping in under it, lightly brushing his face.

_It leads outside. If I could just get up and open it…_

He got to his knees and then slowly to his feet. He tested the door handle.

It was unlocked.

Dick pushed down on the handle and flung the door wide open.

The world beyond was white. White flakes spun lightly from the sky, dancing a dizzying pattern before meeting the ground.

He was free.

"Not so fast, Bird Boy…"

* * *

**MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA I TOLD YOU IT WOULD BE A MAJOR CLIFFY! **

**Sorry. Above statement is for my friend. You know who you are…**

**Kitten; FateTestarossaH; Celestial Showers; doggy bye; KeybladeGrayson14; TheBassGirl; KidRobinFlash; ILoveTheRobins; hyper-swain; Knight-kun; DaughterOfTheSeaGod1; Phoebe Sophia; x3windy12; robinfan72; TheLunaDreamer; aquablue15; **

**Lexi123321: I know! Isn't she awesome!? Yay! Thank you so much; I try for realism, but it's really more of a hit or miss thing… Haha, I'm glad you're so excited! You'll get one, yeesh! I have a life you know! I'm getting more and more upset about that though, especially because school… LOL I had school dude! Yeesh!**

**Ross Terren: Thank you. I wish it was too LOL It was way too short… But it was all I could do; it was that or nothing… I want to write the whole story; it's going to get intense soon… Thanks! **

** .Queen: Yes it was! I'm really good at that XD Haha, thanks. She's as eager for updates as you guys are… You clever girl you… Have a Batcookie**

**dragonfire-wolfgirl (Guest): Thank you for the suggestion! I was actually going to do that anyways though LOL GREAT MINDS THINK ALIKE! Thank you, and I try!**

**RobinsReckoning: Haha, sure thing! I just had to get this one out of the way; angst came before torture in this case… It's terrible; normally it's the other way around though… YES I CAN NOBODY TELLS ME WHAT TO DO! OMG… FEEEEEELS… *curls up next to you and we go through intense feels* Oh, believe me; the crowbar will make an appearance, though probably just a cameo at first… OMG BEST DESCRIPTION OF JASON EVER! Sexy bad-A antihero who cheated death… I love it!**

**krikanalo: Thank you. And I will answer your question next chapter**

**Evie: I'm trying!**

**randomkitty101: Yeah, it was kinda… Necessary, but filler… Go figure… Thanks! LOL I'll try…**

**Celestial Showers: Heeyy, you're new here! Nice to have you with us! Thanks! I'm glad you love it**

**DreamweaverAki: Probably… Thanks! Yeah… Something like that… HAHA sometimes, moms are so oblivious. Haha, yes I do…**

** She says: I agree, but only as homework allows… ;)**

**soccernin19: Totally; I do too, hence this story. Yeah. Well, TADA!**

**3DPhantom: I know! Haha, well, I hope this is soon enough XD**

**aurum88: HAHAHAHA YESSS! I love them. And honestly, I don't plan them like that; they just come out that way. I try, I really do. I thought I had at least one in there that wasn't major cliffies… Yeesh. I know! Well, one will come soon enough. I promise you that. HAHA Well, I like both thoughts… And this has less loopholes than you'd think; I'm trying to keep it as close to cannon as I can… Yay for less scatterbrained!**

**Anonymous: Ooooh, sugar….**

**dianna: I'm glad you love it… And I do take a while; school…**

**Guest: Why thank you!**

**robinfan72: Ummm… now?**


	16. Chapter 16

**Oh gosh, it's been waaaaay too long. Like, for real.**

**Sorry; I've started saying that too often… :\**

**On the bright side, I did make 6****th**** chair in All-Region choir! YEEEEAAAAAH!**

**Anywho, the gracious author has decided to take pity on you poor readers, and finish up the cliffy that you were left with last chapter!**

**Yes, people. You get another Robin chapter. Lucky you guys. Zatanna will come next chapter though; I feel bad for leaving that cliffy hanging too…**

**HAHA JUST KIDDING!**

**It's a Zatanna chapter. Can't go back on my word…**

**And in case you guys forgot what happened and are too lazy to go back and find out *raises hand as one of those people* the **_**slanty words that aren't in bold **_**(I can't remember how to spell it XD) are a recap of the end of the chapter leading to this XD**

**DISCLAIMER: YOUNG JUSTICE ISN'T MINE. **

* * *

"_Wally, listen, about Robin… He's-"_

_A bloodcurdling scream cut her off. A very close, very loud, very pained scream._

"_ZATANNA!" shouted Artemis. The four able teens ran out of the room, leaving Wally with the obnoxious beeping and even more unanswered questions._

Superboy, having been closest to the door, was also the first one out of it. As soon as he'd entered the hallway, Miss Martian was soaring past him at an unbelievable speed. She was the first one in Zatanna's room.

The magician herself was sitting upright in her bed. Her eyes were wide open in what M'gann took to be either shock or fear. She was coated in sweat and her hospital gown was plastered to her skin. She was breathing heavily, as if she'd just been running.

"Zatanna!" Miss Martian was by her side in an instant, a hand on the dark-haired girl's shoulder. Zatanna flinched away from her touch, fixing her frightened gaze on the martian.

"Zatanna? Are… Are you okay?" Miss Martian's voice shook slightly; she'd never seen Zatanna like this before.

After several seconds of silence, Zatanna's eyes seemed to soften, and she blinked a few times, her eyes locked on Miss Martian's face. Her look of shock dropped and was replaced with one of confusion.

"What… Where am I?"

"You are in the cave, Zatanna."

Zatanna turned at Aqualad's calm voice. Neither girl had noticed Aqualad, Artemis and Superboy standing at the door, watching. Zatanna looked around, taking in her surroundings, before nodding slowly in affirmation. Though her face had relaxed, her body was still rigid.

The rest of the team came further into the room.

"Are you okay?" asked Artemis, she and Aqualad taking the seats by the magician's beside. Miss Martian stayed standing by her friend, and Superboy stayed slouched by the door.

"What?" Zatanna turned towards the archer, eyebrows scrunched together in confusion.

"Are. You. Okay?" Artemis repeated slowly.

Zatanna's brow loosened. "Oh, yeah; I'm fine."

Aqualad raised an eyebrow in question. "Are you certain?"

She nodded earnestly. "Yeah, why?"

Miss Martian exchanged a look with Superboy, still slouched by the open door.

"Well…" M'gann seemed hesitant to speak. "We came in because you were… screaming…"

The magician looked down at her lap. Silence sat heavily and awkwardly upon the room. All had questions that begged answers, but none wanted to break the silence to voice them.

Feeling uncomfortable with the thick discomfort, Miss Martian decided to make herself busy. She propped Zatanna's pillows up and helped the injured girl to lean against them. Zatanna still didn't raise her gaze.

Several minutes passed in silence once more. Finally, it was broken by Artemis.

"So… What made you scream?"

Zatanna still didn't look up. She swallowed and opened her mouth as if she were going to speak.

"Somebody needs to explain all this to me right. Now."

Zatann's head – along with all the other heads in the room – snapped towards the door. Standing in the doorway was Wally, clutching a stand with a loudly beeping heart monitor attached.

"Wally!" Miss Martian was by the door in an instant. "You're supposed to be in bed!"

"Not until I get answers." Wally walked further into the room, ignoring Miss Martian and staring instead at Kaldur. "Flash has been ignoring me. Wonder Woman's been ignoring me. You," he pointed an accusatory finger at the Atlantean, "better not ignore me too. Where. Is. Robin?"

"Wait. You mean he's not here?" An edge of panic worked its way into Zatanna's words. "Where is he?"

Aqualad put his head in his hands. When he spoke, his words were resigned. "We… We do not know."

A silence fell over the room.

"You… You don't know?" Zatanna's worried eyes swept their faces. Wally's was the only one to wear shock, not grief or guilt. "What kind of 'don't know?' Like, he's with Batman."

Artemis shook her head. "More like, 'we went on a mission and Robin was separated and he never came back' kind of don't know."

Zatanna's eyes widened. "No…"

Wally kept his head down. "I knew it was a bad idea. It's Batman's fault; if it hadn't been his freaking idea to send us in on a mission in _Gotham_ then maybe Rob would still be here."

"Or maybe it is our fault for sending him in alone."

"Kaldur, how were we supposed to know?" Artemis placed a hand on his shoulder. "Even I was sure Robin could do this on his own. How were we supposed to know the Joker would be there?"

"What?" Wally's head suddenly snapped up. "Say that again."

Artemis looked confused. "Which part?"

"The part about the Joker. He wasn't there; he was on the other side of Gotham."

"No, he was there; Batman, Superboy and I went back to investigate. Batman said it was Joker. And he doesn't lie about that."

Wally's eyes widened. "This is bad," he whispered. "This is really, really bad." He ran a hand through his hair.

"Why?"

Wally didn't answer Artemis' question.

"Zatanna?" Miss Martian's words were cautious. The attention of the room turned to the dazed magician. "Are you okay?"

"This is some sort of joke, right?" Her voice was small and soft.

"Why would we joke about something like this?" demanded Superboy.

M'gann glared at him. "What makes you think this is a joke?"

"Because that's why I screamed. I had a dream. He was in pain. The… The Joker was there… There was so much… So much blood…" She looked back down at her lap while the rest of the team exchanged glances. "That's never happened to me before… It was just so… real…"

Silence once again was heavy on the teens. They were like that for several minutes.

Footsteps at the door brought everyone out of their own thoughts. "There you are, Kid. Toldja I'd be right back." The Flash wasn't rewarded with even a fake smile from his protégé. He turned with concern to Wonder Woman, who'd followed him.

"Tomorrow's a school day," she told them gently. "Get some rest."

All were escorted out of Zatanna's room. Artemis squeezed her friend's hand in comfort before leaving.

The lights in the room were extinguished, leaving Zatanna in the dark and so very alone.

* * *

**So there was something wrong with Gmail *proceeds to get really angry and rant***

**Anyway, bottom line is that most of the reviews and follows got lost… Excuse me…**

***goes to a corner and hides from angry people, and cries over everything unread***

**Anywho, so if you left me something, and you're not on here, I'm REEEEEALLY sorry. If you wanted a response to whatever review you left, then send it again in either another review or a PM. I'LL GET BACK TO YOU! I PROMISE!**

**Also, if you sent me any requests for stories, they're MIA too. So a reminder would be nice XD**

**SPECTACULAR FAVORITERS/FOLLOWERS: Liveyourlifedanceing; DaleksExterminate; blazingwing; thwipthwipity; 1Me and my thoughts1; Curious reader8044; Kitsunakatsuma; Nutella Rocks (and so it does); Alex Skywalker; The Agent of Fire; SkylarkWolf; Bethlovesall; HappyGoLucky15; monst3rboyd; witchsoul531; MistOverMoon; Sky the white dragon; ashes34; Unanomous; Lol muffins; Rayline Li; **

**BELOVED REVIEWS (Seriously, these things make my day):**

** .Queen: LOL Yay! And because Batsy's no fun.**

**YoungJustice4ev3r: HAHAHA Yesssss. My job, it is.**

**Broken Antler in Winter: Yes it is. Oh gosh… Ummm… I'll try to explain this in a chapter, because I'm sure lots of people have that question…**

**ILoveTheRobins: *hides my illegal objects* Ummm, might be better to not call the cops… XD Thank ya**

**thwipthwipity: Haha, yup! Whole reason I wrote this! Out of curiosity, where'd you get the username?**

**krikanalo: Thank you!**

**PhoenixxFlame: Yup! I get paid to do cliffies XD Not really… I wish… I'd be rich… I knowwwww, I feel terrible about my lack of activity…**

**RobinsReckoning: Nooooo, you have to wait for that XD I know, I really do have a perfect set up, but that's why you're waiting XD OMG I DID TOO! HE SHOULD HAVE! Or Dick should have come in there and kicked butt… That would have been sweet! I knoooooowwwwww I'm violent too XD You should see how my family responds when I get a hold of a knife…**

**Rose Terren: I'm TTRRRRYYYYIIIIINNNNGGGGG *tears hair out in frustration* I'm doing too much with my life DX LOL, glad you like the Robin bashing though.**

**soccernin19: Thanks! I know, I felt so bad doing that to him… LOL didn't stop me though…**

**Celestial Showers: Oh yes; evil evil cliffies. Bad, bad beans (who gets this?). Well, now you know why she was screaming…**

**Guest ****(neeeever mind XD): Haha, yeah… School… Awwww, thank ya.**

**lexi123321: Ooooh, okie….**

**Guest**** dragonfire-wolfgirl: Hahahaha, yup…. oOOOOOH I GET IT! Yesh… Danka XD**

**blazingwing: Yes, you do. Join the club. It's a big club; we should get T-shirts. HEY GUYS! WHO WANTS AN "I HATE CLIFFIES!" SHIRT!?**

**3DPhantom: I know! I hope I don't turn into one of those… Gosh, that would stink. Yeah, I'm doing that XD More suspense the better!**

**Guest Person: Going for the descriptive usernames I see XD Awwww, thanks XD I can probably suggest some good ones if you want some…**

**The Guest Person: I KNOOOOOW MEH**

**robinfan72: Ooooooh HEY I KNOW XD**

**EchoRose480: Working on it MEH**

**lexi123321: I KNOOOOOW**

**Lol muffins: Haha, nice threat. And maybe I do… ._. LOOOOL JK. He didn't almost die *psssh* He's gonna be fine… Sorta… Na, not really…**

**Forgot to mention:**

**I wrote a Batman Beyond fic a while back. One-shot, kinda sad, don't know why I wrote it… Anybody interested?**


End file.
